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Delegate Information

What is a Delegate and Why Should IMA Members Participate?

The House of Delegates (HOD) is an annual meeting of physician members from around the state and is the official policy making body of the IMA. Participating physician members of the HOD, referred to as delegates, are made up of local and specialty society members. Similar to how the Idaho legislature considers bills at the state house each year, delegates consider resolutions that propose IMA policy or directives. Delegates may present, provide testimony, and vote on resolutions and other matters discussed during HOD. IMA is a physician driven organization. Being a delegate allows Idaho physicians to have their voices heard and direct IMA to work on your behalf at the Idaho Legislature and with other regulatory agencies.

How does the House of Delegates (HOD) work?

Watch the helpful video on this page about the entire HOD process:

Prior to the Start of the HOD
Members submit resolutions for consideration at HOD.
1. What is a Resolution?
A resolution is the vehicle used to propose an official IMA policy for adoption, directive for action, or both.
HOD Day 1 - Friday
On Friday, submitted resolutions are presented to delegates during a Reference Committee Hearing.
1. What is a Reference Committee?
  A reference committee is a group of active physician members who hear and summarize delegate testimony in support or opposition of presented resolutions; consider submitted amendments to resolutions; and make recommendations to the HOD regarding action to take on resolutions. Reference committees are carefully selected for diversity and balance to reflect the IMA’s membership.
  
  During this hearing, resolution presenters read the language of each resolution. Delegates then testify, debate, or provide comments in support or opposition of the resolutions. Sometimes, delegates dispute the language or directive of a resolution. When this occurs, delegates may propose amendments to resolution language for consideration. After reference committee(s) have heard all testimony and received submitted amendments, the committee meets in a closed session on Friday afternoon to produce a Reference Committee Report (RCR). The RCR takes all delegate testimony and submitted amendments into consideration and recommends to the HOD whether to:
  1. Adopt a resolution as presented,
  2. Amend the language of a resolution and adopt the resolution as amended,
  3. Not Adopt a resolution, and/or
  4. Refer resolutions to the Board of Trustees for further consideration,
HOD Day 2 -Saturday
On Saturday afternoon, the RCR is published by the reference committee(s). Delegates are highly encouraged to review the RCR prior to the HOD meeting on Sunday morning to maximize your understanding of the recommendations.
HOD Day 3 - Sunday
On Sunday, the RCR is presented to the HOD by the reference committee chair(s). Delegates discuss the reference committee recommendations for each resolution separately. During discussion, delegates may submit further amendments to a resolution for consideration by fellow delegates. When discussion is over, delegates vote to adopt or not adopt final resolutions.
Post HOD
After resolutions are adopted by the HOD, delegates and members are asked to prioritize the resolutions via a survey tool. Using that input, the Board of Trustees collaborates with IMA staff to implement resolution policy and/or advocate for legislative change per resolution directives.