You are encouraged to evaluate medical policy, medical practice, and/or marketplace concerns which affect your ability to provide quality patient care as possible resolutions.
 

OPMS Message	Explanation of Guidelines
LSMS Message	Formatting the Resolution
Who May Submit a Resolution	Sample Resolution
Procedure for Submitting

OPMS Members

• OPMS participation ensures our voice in medical policy and medical practice issues. In addition, the decisions made at the House of Delegates drive the actions of the office of Governmental Affairs during the legislative sessions. Moreover, actions taken at the LSMS level are advanced to the AMA level by our AMA Delegation at the Annual and Interim meetings. We have offered a number of resolutions over the years which have influenced AMA policy on a national level.
• If you or other OPMS members have issues which could best be addressed by submitting a resolution for House consideration, please use the following format and submit to Susan D'Antoni 45 days before the LSMS House of Delegates meeting. (See calendar for dates.) These resolutions can be submitted through a standing committee of OPMS to the Executive Committee or the Executive Committee directly. You are encouraged to evaluate medical policy, medical practice, and/or marketplace concerns which affect your ability to provide quality patient care as possible resolutions.
• If you have any specific questions, e-mail Susan D'Antoni, OPMS Executive Director.

LSMS Message

• The House of Delegates is the legislative and policy-making body of the LSMS and is composed of elected delegates and others as provided by the Bylaws. The House of Delegates transacts all business of the Society not otherwise specifically provided for in the Charter and Bylaws, and elects the general officers, except as otherwise provided in the Bylaws. The apportionment of delegates from each parish society is one delegate and one alternate for each 25 members or fraction thereof of the active, dues-exempt, academic and resident members recorded in the office of the Secretary-Treasurer of the Louisiana State Medical Society on June 1 of each year.
• OPMS has 44 delegate seats for 1998.

   

Who May Submit a Resolution

• Resolutions may be presented by a delegate, an alternate delegate, a component society, a general officer of the Society, the Board of Governors, a standing committee of the LSMS, or a standing committee of the House of Delegates. (LSMS Article VIII, E; Article IX, F; Article XI, G., 2.)

   

Procedure for Submission

• To be considered regular business, resolutions must be presented in writing to the Speaker of the House of Delegates, at LSMS Headquarters no later than 45 days before the opening session of the House of Delegates. (Article XI, G., 2.)
• Before submitting a resolution, chekc the LSMS Policy Compendium, available fro LSMS Headquarters or your Component Society, for existin policies that may already address the subject of your resolution.
• A resolution presented later than 45 days will be considered new business by the House only when it meets one or more of the following criteria: (1) It is presented by the President of the LSMS; (2) It is presented by the Board of Governors; (3) It is declared an emergency item by the President, Speaker and Vice Speaker acting as a committeeof the House; or (4) It is accepted by two-thirds (2/3) vote of the House. Resolutions requiring two-thirds (2/3) vote will be referred to the Committee on Rules and Order of Business. The author of the resolution or their designee will meet with the Committee to discuss the reasons for the late submisstion. The committee then submits a report to the House with its recommendations concerning these resolutions.

   

Explanation of Guidelines

• Resolutions must be submitted in the manner and time frame outlined above to allow the Speakers time to review resolutions to make sure their content can be clearly understood and to arrange the order of consideration. Resolutions are grouped by subject when presented to the House. Also, the staff must have adequate time for retyping, printing and sorting for the advance mailing to delegates and component societies, and for the inclusion in the Delegate's Handbook.

   

Formatting the Resolution

• Resolutions should be submitted in the form outlined in the Sample Resolution (shown below). The title reflect the action for which the resolution calls. The whereas should accurately support or document the resolve(s). It is the responsibility of the author to ensure the accuracy of the material contained in the resolution. The resolve(s) should not stand alone, since the House adopts only the resolve(s) and not the whereas section of a resolution. A fiscal note should be attached if any expenditure of funds is anticipated. Attention should be paid to grammar, spelling, and sentence structure to ensure that the intent of the resolution is stated as clearly as possible.
• If you would like assistance with the mechanics of writing a resolution, send a rough copy and the fiscal note, if appropriate, with any supporting documents to Society Headquarters.

Sample Resolution Resolution No. 37   INTRODUCED BY: Board of Governors SUBJECT: Patient Advocacy     WHEREAS, the physician has the duty to care for and about his or her patient as well as possible, and      WHEREAS, the patient should look to the physician for scientifically shoud, cost effective, and artistically delivered medical and surgical management, be it therefore      RESOLVED, that the LSMS undertake a public relations project to emphasize to LSMS members and to the public-at-large the logical and legitimate role of the physician as the patient's advoc ate in matters of health care delivery.  FISCAL NOTE:    None