September 11, 2025
A special election to fill the seat left open following the assassination of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman is scheduled for September 16. The election for House District 34B includes Brooklyn Park and parts of Coon Rapids.
MEDPAC, the political action committee for the MMA, announced its endorsement of XP Lee, the DFL-endorsed candidate for the open seat.
“Xp Lee will be a champion for medicine,” said Chad Fahning, MEDPAC execute director and MMA’s senior manager of lobbying and legislative affairs. “In his professional life, he’s worked as the health equity strategist for the Minnesota Department of Health. Both his professional experience and his personal commitment to advancing health equity line up with the MMA’s advocacy goals.”
The special election will determine the balance of power in the Minnesota House. Prior to Hortman’s death, Republicans shared a 67-67 power agreement with House DFLers. Since, they have had a single vote majority. If the Republican candidate for House District 34B, Ruth Bittner, comes out victorious on Tuesday, Speaker Lisa Demuth (R – Cold Spring) and House Republicans will have a majority and can dictate committee rosters and chairs. The House currently operates under a power-sharing agreement with equal Republican and DFL representation on committee and co-chairs.
The special election comes at a contentious time when Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has publicly announced his intention to call a special session to address public safety amidst growing number of firearm-related deaths in Minnesota and across the country.
If elected, Lee will join the DFL caucus under new leadership. On September 9, the House DFL selected Rep. Zack Stephenson (DFL – Coon Rapids) to lead the caucus. Stephenson is in his fourth term and was the previous co-chair of the Ways and Means Committee.
October 23, 2025
The MMA, along with the University of Minnesota Medical School, will hold a virtual physician forum on November 5 at noon on “Health Professions Education and Minnesota's Rural Health Workforce.”
October 23, 2025
AMA staff have confirmed that, as of October 21, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has guided Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) to lift their temporary holds on Medicare fee-for-service claims impacted by provisions that expired on October 1 – including all Medicare fee-for-service claims in Minnesota.
October 23, 2025
For the second time in eight weeks, national grief expert David J. Schonfeld, MD, FAAP, visited Minneapolis. The first trip was days after the Annunciation Catholic Church and School shooting when he met with school leaders to help with the healing process. He returned October 21 to revisit the school and to meet with local healthcare providers at Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) to offer tips on dealing with the aftermath of crisis.