A subcommittee of the CSAP Government Affairs Committee (GAC) has met several times over the last two months to develop a proposed Policy Platform for the association. Next Thursday, the entire GAC will review the subcommittee recommendations, as will the full Board. Most likely, the Board will then forward the draft platform to all five California district branches for further review and comment. The platform will not be adopted as an official CSAP document until and unless there is approval by all five California district branches. Ideally the platform will be universally approved in October; the sooner the platform is adopted the sooner CSAP’s state advocates at SYASL can utilize it in conversations with policymakers, especially with respect to the development of legislation in 2023. The platform will also be an “outward facing” document – posted and available to anyone who visits CSAP’s website.
This process has been – and will continue to be – open and transparent, inclusive, and democratic – the hallmarks of CSAP decision making on behalf of psychiatrists in California.