MMS NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Please take the MMS survey on medical aid-in-dying
Next
month, MMS members will receive an important survey on their opinions
regarding medical aid-in-dying, also referred to as physician-assisted
suicide. Watch your email, or contact research@mms.org
if you prefer a paper copy. Should you choose to complete this 15–20
minute survey, you will receive free access to one MMS
end-of-life-focused online continuing medical education program, which
can be applied toward the two CME credits in end-of-life care required
of Massachusetts physicians in each licensing cycle. These credits may
also be used toward meeting risk management survey requirements. Thank
you in advance for your participation.
Save the date: 2017 Women's Leadership Forum
The
Women’s Leadership Forum on Friday, September 15, 2017, will focus on
building communication skills for professional and personal
advancement. The event—Confident Communication Toward Socially Intelligent Leadership —features interactive
sessions, experiential work, discussion of workplace applications,
panels, and networking opportunities. Participants will learn skills for
effective, compassionate, assertive leadership. The forum is hosted by
MMS and its Committee on Women in Medicine (CWIM). “On behalf of the
CWIM, I strongly encourage you to honor us with your presence,” said
Helen Cajigas, MD, FCAP, Chair of the Committee on Women in Medicine.
This program welcomes individuals from all genders and backgrounds,
and includes an awards luncheon with a keynote address. It will take
place at MMS Headquarters in Waltham. For more information, contact Erin
Tally at etally@mms.org or (781) 434-7413.
Zika Virus Clinical Guidance
The
Massachusetts Department of Public Health has updated its guidance
around testing of pregnant women potentially exposed to Zika in response
to new information published by CDC. The MDPH recommendations are
in-line with CDC guidance and continue to recommend appropriately timed
testing for symptomatic pregnant patients. Testing of asymptomatic
pregnant patients should be considered and can be requested through
commercial laboratories where Zika virus testing is now widely
available. There is a continued strong recommendation around complete
evaluation of infants born to mothers with potential Zika virus exposure
during pregnancy, regardless of the mother’s laboratory testing status.
Zika virus laboratory test interpretation remains complex as are
questions around timing of conception following potential exposure and
recommended duration of condom use to prevent sexual transmission. MDPH
epidemiology staff are available 24/7 at 617-983-6800 to assist with
interpretation and decision-making as needed. For more, visit the DPH
Zika-specific page.
Interested in global health? Join the Global Medicine Network
The Global Medicine Network
was created by the Committee on Global Health to establish personal and
professional contacts among individuals and organizations working in
international health and global medicine. Login in with your email
address and update your contact info, skills, interests, education, research, etc.
Not a member? Create a profile today! Be sure to check out the new
mapping platform added to the site, which maps our membership’s global
health activity in real time. Sign up and add a quick comment on the progress of your global health activities.
Comprehensive Cannabis Curriculum series available
The Comprehensive Cannabis Curriculum,
available now in 16 modules, is intended to equip doctors and other
health care providers with a robust training on the medical, legal and
social issues around marijuana use. Together with Dr Stephen B. Corn and
Dr Meredith Fisher-Corn of the medical education website
TheAnswerPage.com. “We were talking (to our 10-year-old
son) about medical cannabis and despite the fact that we’re both
Harvard-trained physicians, we knew nothing about medical cannabis or
the endocannabinoid system,” Dr. Fisher-Corn said in an interview with Boston Metro.
“The information that one would find on the internet either said that
marijuana was the best thing or marijuana was the worst thing.There was
no unbiased credible information out there.” The program neither endorses nor seeks to impede the use of cannabinoid medications as a treatment option. The
Curriculum has been subject to multiple layers of expert review, and
provides the data needed to facilitate informed, balanced, transparent
conversations between providers and patients, based upon the research
currently available. For reviews by practicing physicians, see the October issue of Vital Signs.
Benefits Buzz: Legal advisory plan for medical groups
Professional
liability policies may not cover complaints that arise before the Board
of Registration in Medicine (BORIM). Even if those are covered by your
policy, the relevant benefits may be limited. Avoid financial caps
during an investigation by utilizing the Legal Advisory Plan (LAP),
which fills the insurance gap. The LAP is a members-only, affordable
legal service plan, designed to offer expert advice from plan attorneys
on BORIM matters. Don’t miss out. Enroll or renew for $70 a year* — a
fraction of standard legal fees. *Additional discount for groups of five or more. Click here to learn more. Questions? Email lap@massmed.org, or call (781) 434-7311.
ATSDR offers case studies in environmental medicine
ATSDR
Case Studies in Environmental Medicine (CSEM) are self-instructional,
continuing-education primers designed to increase primary care
providers’ knowledge of hazardous substances and aid in the evaluation
of patients potentially exposed to hazardous substances. Each CSEM comes
with additional companion products such as Grand Rounds in Environmental Medicine and Patient Education/Care Instruction Sheets.
Topics for accreditation include asbestos, environmental triggers of
asthma, nitrate/nitrite, lead, PCBs toxicity and taking an exposure
history. For more, click here.
No more handwritten Medicare claims: What to do instead
From
October 9, 2017, NGS will not accept paper claims from Massachusetts
providers that are submitted with handwriting outside a signature field.
All handwritten claims will be returned to the provider. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Internet-Only Manual (IOM) Publication 100-04, Medicare Claims Processing Manual, Chapter 26, Section 30, "Printing Standards and Print File Specifications Form CMS-1500" (700
KB) contains the printing specifications for the CMS-1500 claim form.
Please use this CMS IOM reference to ensure you are completing paper
claims correctly. NGS offers two alternatives to handwritten paper
claims that will be of little cost to your practice:
- NGSConnex,
our web-based self-service portal, is free of charge. In addition to
claims submission, NGSConnex has other useful functions, such as
verifying Medicare entitlement, submitting appeals, and viewing and
downloading your remittance advice.
- The Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) page
on the NGS website explains how to enroll and what capabilities your
office needs to submit electronic claims. NGS can provide you with
no-cost claim submission software, PC-ACE.
Reminders! New Medicare Card, AMA Nominations, and more
New Medicare Card: What you and your patients need to know
CMS
is removing Social Security Numbers from Medicare cards to help fight
identity theft and safeguard taxpayer dollars. The new Medicare
Beneficiary Identifier number will be randomly generated. CMS is
referring to this as the New Medicare Card (previously, it was known as
the Social Security Number Removal Initiative, or SSNRI). To help you
find information quickly, CMS has a new home page linking you to the latest details, including how to talk to your Medicare patients about the New Medicare Card. Please review and bookmark the New Medicare Card home page and Provider web page, so you have the information you need by April 1, 2018, when the new numbering system goes into effect.
Join our AMA delegation: The MMS Committee on Nominations is seeking candidates (Deadline is Thursday!)
The
MMS Committee on Nominations is currently considering candidates for
nomination as AMA Delegate and Alternate Delegate to the Massachusetts
AMA Delegation. The deadline for submission of nomination applications
is Thursday, August 17, 4:00 p.m. Visit www.massmed.org/amanoms
to learn more about the qualifications and submit your application.
Interviews with the Committee on Nominations will be held at MMS
Headquarters, Waltham, on Thursday, September 14, 2017, 4:30 p.m.–7:30
p.m. Applicants should plan to be available on this date. Questions?
Please contact Linda Healy (800) 322-2303, ext. 7008 or lhealy@mms.org, or Karen Harrison at ext. 7463 or kharrison@mms.org.
MMS grants for International Health Study; apply this summer
Medical
students and resident physician members of the MMS are eligible to
apply for grants of up to $2,000 to defray the costs of studying abroad.
The primary goal of these International Health Studies (IHS) grants,
provided by the Massachusetts Medical Society and Alliance Charitable
Foundation, is to encourage international education, particularly
focusing on under-served populations. Preference will be given to
projects providing health care-related work and/or training of staff,
and to applicants planning careers serving underprivileged populations.
Research projects that do not involve direct clinical care or teaching
will not be considered. Programs must last at least three weeks to
receive consideration. Applications are due by September 15, 2017; more information about the grants and application expectations.
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 County Safe Prescribing and Dispensing Conferences
Thursday, September 14, 2017, 8:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Randolph, MA
Open to all Norfolk County Registered Prescribers and Pharmacists
The above activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Featured Online CME Courses – 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.
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
See our full listing of risk management online CME activities.
This week in health care
Sign up for daily roundups of health news affecting Massachusetts.
Supervised injection sites stir debate
The
Massachusetts Medical Society and its president are proponents of
supervised injection facilities (SIFs). The group has been urging
Massachusetts legislators to pilot a state-run safe injection site program.
SIFs would help reduce overdose deaths in a major way, as seen in other
countries including Canada and Australia, argues Henry Dorkin,
president of the medical society.
Mass. hospitals fall in ranking of nation's best
Massachusetts
General Hospital, which took the top spot in 2015 and dropped to third
place last year, fell to fourth place on the list.
Brigham and Women's, the other hospital that usually makes the list,
didn't make the list at all this year. The Brigham earned sixth place in
2015 and 13th in 2016.
$500K awarded to state prisons for opioid treatment
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced
Monday it is awarding $500,000 in opioid abuse treatment funding for
five Bay State prisons. The new money will support a wide range of pre-
and post-recovery services for inmates who have abused opioids. Inmates
must be within two months of release to be eligible for the programs.
The treatment and recovery services will be available to inmates up to
one year after their release.
New charges against former Springfield gynecologist
Dr. Rita Luthra
and her attorney have argued the government pursued a flimsy case
against her that toppled her life's work of providing health care for
hundreds of homeless and low-income women.
Pot lobby leveraged cash to tweak law
The total lobbying tab — culled from a Herald review
of lobbying records filed with the secretary of state's office —
underscores the attention the debate has commanded in the State House,
where lawmakers last month passed a new law dictating how the potential
billion-dollar industry will operate in Massachusetts.
Alnylam still can't explain trial deaths
More than 10 months after disclosing that patients who received one of its experimental drugs
in a late-stage trial had died at a far higher rate than those on
placebo, Cambridge-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals still cannot
conclusively explain what went wrong.
Fatal opioid overdoses have decreased in parts of Eastern Mass.
The reported drop-off
this year comes after alarming increases in recent years, including a
16 percent jump in Massachusetts, fueled by the widespread availability
of fentanyl. But so far this year, deaths in two counties have dropped,
an unexpected reversal as opioid deaths continue to rapidly rise
nationally.
