MMS NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
EOHHS Issues New Regulations for Provider Organizations
The Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) released final regulations
implementing the prior legislative mandate that all Massachusetts
providers have interoperable electronic health records. The final
interpretation of the regulations is largely consistent with the MMS
suggested approach: to implement the requirement by provider
organization rather than individual provider, to a take phased-in
approach by provider organization size, and to ramp up the requirements
incrementally over four years. The regulations do not impose this
mandate on provider organizations with fewer than 10 licensed providers
(MDs, NPs, PAs). The regulations also provide changes to the patient
consent process for the Mass HIway, the state’s electronic health
information exchange, clarifying that consent with a choice by patients
to opt out of participation.
DPH to Send Prescribing Information
The Department of Public
Health will be sending emails on March 1st to all prescribers in
Massachusetts providing information on how their prescribing of Schedule
II and III opioids compares to other prescribers within their
specialties. The “Provider Trend Notifications," as required by the
Governor’s 2016 opioid law, are issued once annually for the sole
purpose of prescriber education. Such information is not shared with
licensing boards and cannot be compelled from the DPH. The notifications
will provide information regarding the quantity and volume of opioids
prescribed, as compared with others in the same specialty. (Specialty is
determined by the self-selection at the time of enrollment in
MassPAT.)
All Massachusetts
Prescription Awareness Tool (MassPAT) users will be sent their
password-protected notification by email. If you have any questions
regarding the notification contact, MassPAT at mapmp.dph@state.ma.us or
617-753-7310. Updated information will be available on the MassPAT
website next week: www.mass.gov/dph/dcp/pmp.
A Reminder to Renew for 2017
Renew your MMS membership for
2017 before March 15 and make sure you continue to receive valuable
benefits, like your subscription to the
New England Journal of Medicine, and up to 50 percent off CME, including the
Women’s Health Forum on April 21, 2017.
Click here to renew online today or call 800-322-2303, ext. 7495 with questions.
MMS Committee Application Deadline is March 3
If you would like to become
more involved in the MMS, consider participating on a committee or the
Member Interest Network Executive Council. Committee appointments are
for specific terms, usually three-year renewable commitments. We have
put in place resources for distance participation including conference
calls and online meetings.
Click here for details and application forms.
Mindful Practice in Medicine Workshop Planned
A Mindful Practice in
Medicine workshop is planned for March 18 and 19 at MMS Headquarters,
followed by four consecutive Wednesday webinars. The workshop focuses on
developing a capacity for self-awareness in stressful and demanding
situations and building resilience in community.
Click here for information;
click here to register.
Benefit Buzz: PQRS Reporting Deadline Extended and Special Member Discount
The deadline for submitting
your Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) measures to CMS is March
10, 2017. MMS has arranged for a 33 percent discount using PQRSwizard to
rapidly collect, validate, report, and submit data on the quality of
care to Medicare with 99.5 percent success rate and avoid payment
adjustments.
Click here for more information.
Benefit Buzz: Legal Advice with Board of Registration in Medicine Issues
Your medical license is one of
your most valuable assets and the Legal Advisory Plan is designed to
help safeguard your license in the event of a Board of Registration
(BRM) investigation. The LAP, a member only, lost-cost legal service, is
designed to provide expert advice from the plan's attorneys to
effectively respond to BRM issues. Enrollment for 2017-2018 plan year is
available.
Click here to learn more. Questions? Email lap@massmed.org, or call (781) 434-7311.
Dr. Adelman to
Conduct Workshop at Schwartz Center’s Annual Compassion in Action Health
Care Conference
PHS Director Steven Adelman,
M.D. will be conducting a workshop, “Dream Team 101: Creating a Culture
of Teamwork,” at the Schwartz Center’s Annual Compassion in Action
Health Care Conference on June 26. The conference runs from June 25-27
at the Westin Copley Place Hotel, Boston, MA.
Click here to register.
Women's Health Forum to Present Awards April 21
At the Women’s Health Forum
on April 21, Robert H. Young, M.D., will be presented with the 2016
Women’s Health Research Award; Barbara L. Smith, M.D., will receive the
2016 Women’s Health Award; Fatima Cody Stanford, M.D., will receive the
2017 Women’s Health Award, and JoAnn E. Manson, M.D., will receive the
2017 Women’s Health Research Award.
JoAnn Manson, M.D. will
deliver the morning keynote address. Dr. Manson is a physician at
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Michael and Lee Bell Professor of
Women's Health at Harvard Medical School. Barbara L. Smith, M.D. will
deliver the afternoon keynote speech. Dr. Smith is director of the
breast program at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
The Women’s Health Forum,
provided by the Massachusetts Medical Society and its Committee on Women
in Medicine in collaboration with the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Mary
Horrigan Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology, features
a lecture and panel on transgender health, a session on the effect of
hormones on metabolism and weight regulation, and a discussion on the
evolution of breast surgery by faculty from the Massachusetts General
Hospital (MGH).
For registration, visit
www.massmed.org/whf2017 , or contact Erin Tally at etally@mms.org.
Educational Programs and Events
Unless otherwise noted, all events are
held at MMS headquarters, 860 Winter St., Waltham, MA. Visit
www.massmed.org/cme/events to view our full calendar of upcoming live
CME activities.
Norfolk District Attorney’s Office – Safe Prescribing & Dispensing Conference
Tuesday, March 14, 2017, 7:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Randolph, MA
Open to subscribers of controlled substances who practice in Norfolk County.
Women’s Health Forum – Hormones: Do They Define Us?
MMS Headquarters, Waltham Conference Center
Friday, April 21, 2017, 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
The above activities have been approved for
AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Save the Date
Annual Education Program – The Winding
Road of Addiction: Hope on the Horizon, Seaport Hotel and World Trade
Center, Boston, MA
Friday, April 28, 2017, 8:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
MMS Annual Meeting, Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center, Boston, MA
Shattuck Lecture and Luncheon – Personalized Medicine or Precision Medicine
Friday, April 28, 2017, 12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Directors of Medical Education Conference – Advancing Collaboration and Compliance
Thursday, May 18, 2017, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Featured Online CME Activities – Risk Management Credit
Talking to Patients About Gun Safety - NEW
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
For additional risk management online CME activities, visit
www.massmed.org/cme.
Featured Online CME Activities – Risk Management Credit
The above activities have been approved for
AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
For additional risk management online CME activities, visit
www.massmed.org/cme.
This Week in Health Care
Opioid Overdoses Blamed for Nearly 2,000 Deaths in Mass.
Department of Public Health
report released last week showed that opioids were confirmed as the
cause of 1,465 deaths and suspected in 514 additional deaths in 2016.
Opioids killed or were suspected of killing five times more people than
died in car crashes.
Massachusetts Hospitals Feel Pressure to Reject Med Students
Massachusetts medical school officials
say as many as 1,000 medical school graduates may be unfairly penalized
because of their country of origin, due to policies put forth by
President Trump. Massachusetts could be hit particularly hard because
the state is home to some of the world's leading teaching hospitals as
well as smaller community hospitals that typically depend on a large
pool of foreign medical talent.
Gov. Baker and Businesses at Odds on MassHealth Expenses
Gov. Charlie Baker
has been backed into a corner by the soaring expense of MassHealth, the
state's publicly subsidized health insurance program for lower-income
residents. MassHealth now accounts for about 40 percent of the state
budget, and he fears that even more people will choose it over their
employer's coverage.
Hospitals Awarded $8M in State Grants for MassHealth IT Upgrades
State grants
to hospitals are intended to help the health systems better care for
patients on a budget, as the state's MassHealth program moves into what
is known as an accountable care model of health care payment, which
doesn't require a designated primary care provider.
Massachusetts Budget Group Warns Loss of Federal Funding
Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center
warns Massachusetts is at risk of losing billions in federal funding —
the vast majority of that going to Medicaid — if the Trump
administration decides to change several federal programs.
Haverhill Hospital Eyed for Fentanyl Addiction Study
Holy Family Hospital
is being considered for a study aimed at fighting addiction to the
opioid fentanyl to test pharmacologic treatment, or using certain drugs,
and to fight substance abuse.
Berkshire Medical Center's Opioid Unit Fills Much-Needed Gap
Berkshire Medical Center
in Pittsfield has found that its opioid unit has filled what doctors
and other care providers said was a gap in substance abuse treatment in
the area — a longer term detox unit.
Boston Medical Center to Run Corrigan Mental Health Center
Dr. John C. Corrigan Mental Health Center
at Boston Medical Center will control emergency services, taking over
operations from the state, who will continue to operate Corrigan's
in-patient psychiatric hospital, counseling services and other mental
health programs.
State Issues Licenses to Holistic Healers
Massachusetts became the 22nd state
in the nation to license naturopathic doctors after legislation passed
last year to bring the medical professionals under the authority of the
state Department of Public Health.
