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News and announcements
Crash courses in advocacy
The MMS and the Worcester District Medical Society (WDMS) sponsored events this spring to teach members more about the legislative process and pending health care legislation.
At the MMS Legislative Leadership Conference, Sen. Cindy Friedman, senate chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, updated members on the most important bills before lawmakers. Attendees also learned how to successfully advocate, leverage media to further a cause, and
effectively testify before committees.
The WDMS Legislative Breakfast brings together the district medical society’s delegates and legislative committee members with local legislators to discuss issues, stake out positions, and collaborate on pending legislation affecting public health or the practice of medicine.
Committee on Legislation Chair Ted Calianos, MD, confers with Alex Calcagno, director of advocacy, government, and community relations, and Alain Chaoui, MD, then-president of the MMS, at the MMS Legislative Leadership Conference.
Rep. John Mahoney, MMS General Counsel Charles Alagero, and Giles Whalen, MD, talk at the WDMS annual Legislative Breakfast.
Dr. Manatis honored by Barnstable District Medical Society as Community Clinician of the Year
Barnstable District Medical Society named Dr. Anna Manatis as their 2019 Community Clinician of the Year, an honor recognizing her contributions and professionalism as a physician.
Dr. Manatis practiced on Cape Cod for over twenty years and recently practiced at Massachusetts General Hospital with the Bulfinch Medical Group for six years. She currently is a physician with Brigham and Women’s Harbor Medical Associates. In addition to her clinical practice,
Dr. Manatis served as a Trustee on the MMS Board of Trustees and as a chairperson on the MMS Public Health Reference Committee.
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Health plan provider directory: Free webinar
In an effort to improve the accuracy of health plan provider directories, streamline the process across plans, and reduce the overall administrative burdens for providers, HealthCare Administrative Solutions and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts have both engaged
the Council for Affordable Quality Healthcare's (CAQH) DirectAssure to develop an electronic solution for use in the Massachusetts market. The rollout of this new tool is expected to begin this summer, starting with individual and behavioral health providers.
The Massachusetts Medical Society would like to invite you to a one-hour webinar training session on updating provider directory information using the new CAQH Direct Assure tool. The training session will be held on:
- Tuesday, June 18, 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
To register, please contact us today at PPRC (781) 434-7702 or Bissan Biary
@bbiary@mms.org. We will follow up and send you a link to register.
MMS individual claims consultation days
The Massachusetts Medical Society is hosting in-person Insurance Claims Consultation Days (ICC). ICC days are designed to allow MMS member physicians and/or their practice staff to schedule 30-minute appointments with health plans to focus on the adjudication of troublesome claims.
Available in three locations, representatives from health plans will be on-site to review claims with you to facilitate claims processing.
Schedule your appointment at
massmed.org/ICC2019.
The following health plans are participating: Allways Health Partners, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Fallon Health, Harvard Pilgrim HealthCare, Health New England, MassHealth, Medicare, Tufts Health Plan, UnitedHealthcare, and Unicare.
Water safety and drowning prevention
The Society has resources available for members to share with patients, especially those who are parents or caretakers of young children.
A downloadable flyer is available on the website along with other patient safety resources for patients and physicians.
Renew your membership
Last chance to
Renew Your Membership for 2019. Deadline is June 19.
Our voice is powerful on Beacon Hill and Capitol Hill.
Our medical resources are of the highest caliber.
Our community is diverse across many specialties.
Keep your membership current with the MMS.
Renew today
Benefit buzz
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Building a referral network begins with clear communication; professional referral sources must know how you can help them. To learn more about growing referral sources
and developing a communications strategy, contact us today at (781) 434-7702 or email us at
pprc@mms.org.
Legal Advisory Plan: Why you should enroll now
Did you know that your professional liability insurance may not cover Board of Registration in Medicine investigations, or that the policy may be limited? And your premium may subsequently go up? Take advantage of the Legal Advisory Plan, an MMS members-only benefit, as your first line of
defense. Enroll or renew for July 2019 – July 2020 coverage now for a nominal fee of $70 - a fraction of the cost of hiring an attorney. You must be enrolled at the initiation of an investigation to use plan services. Questions? Email
lap@massmed.org or call (781) 434-7311.
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Educational programs and events
Featured online CME course
More online CME
Upcoming events and trainings
June 19: MMS Board of Trustees Meeting (by invitation only - MMS Headquarters) The next Board of Trustees Meeting will be held on June 19 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at the MMS Headquarters.
July 9: You Can Do It: Buprenorphine Prescribing in Primary Care (MMS Headquarters)
This program aims to allow physicians in the primary care setting who have successfully made opioid use disorder (OUD) care a part of their daily practice to share their experiences, resources they have used along the
way, and empower attendees to start prescribing lifesaving buprenorphine therapy more regularly in their practices.
Quote of the week
"When it comes right down to it, it’s the stories that keep me going. Illness can’t exist without narrative, and stories are the currency of medicine."
— Dr. Zachary G. Jacobs on his motivation for delivering patient care.
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Tweet of the week
@AmerMedicalAssn
American Medical Association: A national organization empowering physicians, residents and med students.
What’s new in health care
Check out the most clicked-on stories from this week's MMS Media Watch.
Sign up for daily Massachusetts media roundups by email. Some publications are fully accessible only to their subscribers.
Trauma surgeon taking care of David Ortiz has saved many lives (Boston Globe)
The trauma surgeon caring for David Ortiz at Mass. General Hospital is an Army veteran who has saved the lives of Boston Marathon bombing victims, police officers who've been shot on the job, and soldiers wounded in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. After treating so many heroes injured on
Boston streets and distant battlefields,
Dr. David R. King now finds himself caring for a local sports hero who is revered as a baseball legend both here and abroad in his native Dominican Republic. King operated on Ortiz on Monday, after the retired Red Sox slugger was flown to MGH suffering from a gunshot wound that he received at a bar
Sunday in Santo Domingo.
Saudi prince denies owing Children's Hospital $3.5M for child's care (Boston 25)
A Saudi prince is denying that he
owes a Boston hospital $3.5 million for the medical costs of a child the hospital says he promised to cover. Prince Abdelilah bin Abdelaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Faisal Al Saud was sued by Boston Children's Hospital in April over unpaid medical bills for a 2-year-old with type 1 spinal muscular atrophy, which
affects muscle strength and movement. The hospital says the prince asked the hospital to treat the child and agreed to pay for her care.
1 In 5 people in Mass. have experienced a recent medical error (WBUR)
At least 62,000 Massachusetts residents suffer from a medical error every year. That's one of the key findings of a new study from the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety — a state agency that conducts research and training in medicine.
The study finds the excess cost of medical errors in just one year is more than $600 million. The researchers used insurance data to track preventable errors like infections after surgery, excess blood loss and bed sores.
Clark University to launch cannabis regulation program (WBJ)
Clark University in Worcester has introduced what it calls the country's first certificate program in cannabis control regulation. The online program,
Certificate in Regulatory Affairs for Cannabis Control, will launch in fall and is hoped to serve as a timely educational response to public policy issues at times perplexing municipal leaders and frustrated cannabis entrepreneurs. With the new program, the school
hopes to build partnerships with the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, which is moving to Worcester's Union Station by the end of the year.
