Thank you for being part of the California Medical Association community (the California Medical Association, together with its agents, assigns, subsidiaries, and contracted vendors are referred to herein as "CMA", "We", "Our"). To ensure the best possible experience for all Members, Staff, Guests, Speakers, Exhibitors, Students, Volunteers, Attendees, and others who join, use, attend, contribute to, or otherwise participate in ("You", "Your", "Yourself", or "Participants") the CMA community, website, social media, webinars, in-person meetings, in-person events, video-streamed events, discussion forums, councils, committees, or other gatherings or platforms (each a "CMA Forum", together, the "CMA Forums" or the "CMA Community"), CMA has established some basic rules and guidelines ("CMA Forum Guidelines").

CMA Forums are intended to facilitate constructive, thoughtful, unbiased, useful, and relevant dialogue, debate, education, networking, and exchange of information in a respectful, professional manner ("Purpose"). By joining, using, entering, attending, listening, contributing, posting, transmitting, promoting, facilitating, or otherwise participating in or to any CMA Forum ("Participate", "Participating", "Participation", "Contribute", "Contributing", or "Contribution"), You agree that You have read and will follow these CMA Forum Guidelines for the Purpose. You also agree to reserve comment, discussion, content, opinion, information, data, documentation, material, media, posts, shared files, and all other input ("Content") to that best suited to the medium and format of the particular CMA Forum. Please acquaint Yourself with these important CMA Forum Guidelines prior to Your Participation in any CMA Forum. Questions about the CMA Forum Guidelines should be directed to Our Member Services Team via the Contact Us link at the bottom of this page.

In order to facilitate and preserve a climate that encourages civil and fruitful dialogue that fulfills the Purpose, CMA reserves the right, in Its sole and absolute discretion, to limit, suspend, terminate, or otherwise control electronic and/or in-person access to any or all CMA Forums for, and to take any other appropriate action against, any Participant using a CMA Forum to Contribute or facilitate the Contribution of Content intended to victimize, harass, degrade, abuse, threaten, or intimidate an individual or group on the basis of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and against anyone who otherwise violates the CMA Forum Guidelines.

The Basic Rules

• For all Content You Contribute, first state Your name, affiliation, location, and any potential conflicts of interest. Then provide a clear and concise statement of the topic of Your Content and Your position on the subject at issue. This allows Participants to respond more appropriately to Your Content.
• All Content You Contribute must add something of value to the existing Content. We reserve the right to reject any Content for any reason.
• Contribute Your Content only to and in the most appropriate CMA Forum. Do not duplicate Contribution of Your Content.
• Participation is meant to stimulate thoughts and discussion, not to create contention. Let all Participants express themselves, just as You may. 
• Do not harass, abuse, criticize, or threaten another Participant. If You disagree with the Content Contributed by another Participant, respond respectfully to the subject at issue. Do not personally attack any Participant, whether or not you agree with Content they Contribute
• All defamatory, libelous, abusive, profane, disparaging, hateful, threatening, harassing, offensive, pornographic, sexually explicit, obscene, or illegal Content is strictly prohibited.
• Do not Contribute or reference any Content that You would not want all Participants to see or that You would not want anyone to know came from You. 
• Do not use hate speech. Hate speech is unacceptable.
• Do not post medical or other professional information that is intended to be, or may reasonably be construed to be intended as, medical or other professional advice.
• Use caution when the Content at issue is or involves products or services. Do not Contribute commercial messages about products or services. The CMA Community is not an appropriate place to opine on particular products or services.  
• Please note carefully all items listed in the Legal rules below. 
• Do not impersonate any person, business, or other entity. Doing so in an attempt to deceive, harass, or otherwise mislead another CMA Forum Participant is forbidden.
• Do not engage in any form of solicitation or spamming.
• Do not engage in any activity that is unlawful.
• Do not Contribute or reference Content that is off topic.
• Recordings of CMA Forums by any Participant or other third party are strictly prohibited without the express, prior, written permission of CMA.
• Do not Contribute any Content protected by copyright, trademark, or intellectual property rights without the express, prior, written permission of the copyright, trademark, or intellectual property rights owner. By Contributing Content, You warrant and represent that You own the copyright, trademark, and intellectual property rights with respect to such Content or that You have received express, prior, written permission from the copyright, trademark, or intellectual property rights owner. In addition, You grant, and You warrant and represent that You have the right to grant, CMA the unlimited, non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual right and license to use, display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and reproduce such Content.
• You may not use or reproduce Content Contributed by another Participant or third party without obtaining the express, prior, written consent of the Contributing Participant or other appropriate third party.
• Content should not be Contributed if it encourages or facilitates Participants to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business, or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Content that encourages or facilitates an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.

The Legal Rules

Content You Contribute in any CMA Forum is available to all with access to the CMA Community to see and is subject to libel, slander, antitrust, and other laws and regulations. 

CMA Forums are provided as a service for CMA Members and other Participants in the CMA Community for the Purpose.  CMA is not responsible for the Content Contributed by Participants. CMA retains the right to actively monitor the CMA Forums for inappropriate Content and to exercise editorial control of Content. However, CMA does not confirm or verify the Content posted by Participants and therefore cannot validate or invalidate its accuracy. CMA recommends that all Participants independently research and verify the accuracy of any and all Content in any CMA Forum before taking any action thereon. We also rely on Our Participants to report abuse and inappropriate Content, action, or behavior by notifying CMA immediately via the Contact Us link at the bottom of this page. In the event that any abuse or inappropriate Content, action, or behavior is brought to Our attention, CMA will take all appropriate action.

CMA retains the right to create an official audio, video, documentary, and/or other form of recording of proceedings and Contributions at and in any or all CMA Forums ("Official Recordings"). By Participating in any CMA Forum or making any Contribution to a CMA Forum, You agree to CMA's right to create Official Recordings and consent that Your image, name, likeness, voice, affiliations, location, potential conflicts of interest, Content, and/or Contribution may be recorded by CMA and included and reflected in the Official Recordings, which shall be retained by CMA for one (1) year.

CMA disclaims all warranties with regard to Content Contributed or otherwise made available in the CMA Forums, whether Contributed by CMA or any Participant or third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. CMA does not endorse any particular product or service.

In no event shall CMA be liable for any special, indirect, or consequential damages, or any damages whatsoever resulting from use or loss of use, use or loss of data, or use or loss of profits, arising out of or in connection with the Contribution of, use, or performance of any Content Contributed or otherwise contained on or in any CMA Forum.

CMA reserves the right, without limitation to that which is expressly stated in these CMA Forum Guidelines and in Our Terms Of Use, Privacy Policy, CMA Policy On The Prohibition Of Harassment, and all other CMA Policies, to moderate or remove any Content at any time, and to limit or ban any Participant at any time, for any reason. If Content speaks to illegal activities, CMA will contact appropriate authorities as required by law. CMA has no obligation to delete Content Participants find personally objectionable or offensive.

In addition to these CMA Forum Guidelines, We ask that You read and abide by Our Terms Of Use as well as read and understand Our Privacy Policy, CMA Policy On The Prohibition Of Harassment, and all other CMA Policies, including all CMA Forums.

Violation of these CMA Forum Guidelines, the CMA Terms Of Use, Privacy Policy, CMA Policy On The Prohibition Of Harassment, and/or any other CMA Policy, may result in Your Content being removed, Your Participation being limited, Your membership being revoked, and/or You being banned from access to, Participation in, and/or Contribution to CMA Forums altogether, or other action in the sole discretion of CMA.

CMA retains the right to change or modify these CMA Forum Guidelines, Our Terms Of Use, Privacy Policy, and/or any other CMA Policy at any time without notice.