Health Equity

MSDC President Dock Winston, MD, MPH, MBA testified on March 5 at a DC Council Committee on Health hearing reviewing the performance of the DC Health boards of licensure.

At the hearing, Dr. Winston brought up two issues of concern to the membership - license renewal fees especially for one-year license renewals, and ensuring DC meets the AMA/Dr. Lorna Breen Foundation's best language on physician wellbeing.

Below is Dr. Winston's testimony.

March 5, 2025
 
Councilmember Christina Henderson
Chair, Committee on Health
1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20004
 
Dear Chair Henderson,
 
The Medical Society of the District of Columbia (MSDC) is the largest medical organization representing metropolitan Washington physicians in the District. We advocate on behalf of all 11,000 plus licensed physicians in the District and seek to make the District the nation’s model for patient care and physician practice.

I appreciate the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the Society and speak on our work with the Board of Medicine over the past year. MSDC appreciates the leadership of Dr. Chithenga and the entire staff of the Board of Medicine. Last year we worked together to provide information on medical license renewal and worked closely together to help physician renew their medical license.

For today’s hearing I want to highlight three issues for the committee:

1.    Licensing fees for one-year renewals: The Board implemented a new renewal cycle beginning last year where a medical license is renewed based on the applicant’s birth month and year. MSDC supports this idea BUT does not support that DC Health charged the same fee for licensees who renewed for one or two years. We strongly believe that licensees who have to renew this year should be exempt from a licensee renewal fee or at a minimum receive a greatly reduced fee. Asking physicians to pay a fee for four years but only renewing essentially for three is problematic.
2.    Change harmful language around wellness and addiction. The Mayor’s Healthcare Workforce Task Force included a recommendation in its draft report to limit, “‘fitness for duty’ questions during application and renewal cycles” such that they only apply to current impairment to practice safely. The Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes Foundation has identified the District as one of the states whose licensure language can harm physician wellness by forcing unnecessary disclosure of past impairment and wellness treatment. We want to continue speaking with the Council and DC Health about removing any license or certificate language that would stigmatize physicians seeking wellbeing care.

Please reach out to the MSDC office if our membership can be of assistance on these or any issue. We look forward to working with you and the Committee to make the District the nation’s model for patient care and physician practice.

Sincerely,
Dock G. Winston, MD, MPH, MBA
President, Medical Society of DC