About the Society

History

It appears from the record that the Society adopted its first set of Bylaws in 1950 with Drs. Brown, Bradt, Taylor and Haruff as founding members. As is the case today, the organization was formed as a component Society to the California Medical Association.  Early issues included patient grievance procedures, the ethics of advertising and cooperation with local Hospital and Public Health efforts.

In 1965 the Society was bequeathed a sizable endowment from the will of Elizabeth Sans a patient of one of the founding physicians. The fund was designated to help with medical

expenses of needy county residents. The fund was administered by the Society until 1995 when, for accounting purposes, it was transferred to the Hazel Hawkins Hospital Foundation. By regulation the determination committee is composed of a majority of society members and thus the Sans Fund continues to serve needy county residents with medical expenses other than physician fees.

Through the 80's and 90's the Society received regular disbursements from San Benito Co. Board of Supervisors to reimburse local physicians for hospital care of local indigent patients. In the 90's this arrangement was replaced by the CMSP program which is administered by the state but acts as a county Medi-Cal system.

In the eariy 1990's the Society responded to the advent of "managed care" by offering several

seminars that explored the multiple ramifications of this invention. Since 2000 educational efforts have emphasized practice management needs of its members. Topics have included Labor Laws, Building Better Staff - Patient Relations and Taking Charge Of Your Health Plan And IPA Contracts. These have been very well received by both the newly arrived and more established local physicians.

In the early 2000's Society leadership visited CMA headquarters in San Francisco and embarked on a campaign to bolster both Society and CMA membership. This has strengthened both the Society and the legislative efforts of the parent organization in Sacramento.  In 2005 work was begun on a modern set of By-laws and in August of 2006 the Society was incorporated as a nonprofit entity with the IRS.

Through these efforts the Society has tried to fulfill its motto - "promoting quality medicine in San Benito County".