A report by the AMA’s Council on Medical Services debated yesterday at the AMA’s Interim Meeting of the House of Delegates in New Orleans will put the AMA’s support behind an effort to classify individuals with intellectual disabilities as a medically underserved group. Psychiatrist Vijaya Appareddy, M.D., a former vice chair of the President’s Committee on Intellectual Disabilities, brought a resolution to the AMA house last year that resulted in the CMS report. The report will likely be approved when the full House of Delegates meets this afternoon. Appareddy, pictured here, says designation as a medically underserved group will help to improve access and quality of care for a vulnerable population. For further coverage of the meeting, see upcoming editions of Psychiatric News; for information about intellectual disabilities, see http://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/newsarticle.aspx?articleid=104486 and http://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/newsarticle.aspx?articleid=104001.
(Image: Mark Moran)