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1. CMA Reaffirms Opposition to Physician-Assisted Suicide
CMA today reaffirmed its position against physician-assisted suicide, believing that assisting in someone’s death is in direct conflict with a doctor’s ethical duties.
“CMA believes in humane and compassionate care for the terminally ill, including appropriate pain control and counseling for the dying and their families. But assisting someone to die is unethical and unacceptable, and is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer,” says CMA President Anmol S. Mahal, M.D. The reaffirmation was made in reaction to legislation being introduced in California to legalize physician-assisted suicide.
CMA has taken and reaffirmed its position against physician-assisted suicide five times since the 1980s.
Click here for more information.
Contact: Karen Nikos, 916/551-2069 or knikos@cmanet.org.
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2. Quality Matters: CMS Gears Up for Physician Quality Reporting Initiative
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week released preliminary information on its new quality-reporting program, the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI). Beginning July 1, physicians who participate in the voluntary program in 2007 will receive lump sum bonus payments in early 2008 equivalent to 1.5 percent of their total allowed charges for covered professional services.
To be eligible for the bonus, you must report on at least three of the 66 quality measures in 80 percent of applicable cases. If there are not three measures that are relevant to your practice, you need only report on those that are applicable.
You do not need to enroll to participate in the program. You must simply report the appropriate quality measure data on claims using G-codes and/or CPT II codes.
Exact details of the program—including all of the reporting requirements and the feedback loop—have not yet been finalized. Stay tuned for more details.
Click here for more information.
Contact: Sandra Bressler, 415/882-5171 or sbressler@cmanet.org.
3. Medi-Cal Delays Switch to NPIs; Extends Registration Deadline to May 23
The California Department of Health Services (DHS) recently announced that Medi-Cal has extended its National Provider Identifier (NPI) registration deadline to May 23. And to ease the transition, Medi-Cal will implement on May 23 a “dual use” period, during which physicians will be encouraged to use both their Medi-Cal provider numbers and their NPIs (if available) on Medi-Cal claim forms. During this transition period, NPI use is encouraged but not required for adjudication. Physicians must, however, continue to use their Medi-Cal provider numbers until instructed otherwise. More information will be published in Medi-Cal’s March Provider Update.
Medi-Cal will on April 23 begin accepting the new universal claim forms (CMS 1500 for physicians, UB 04 for institutions). On June 25, Medi-Cal will no longer accept claims on the old forms (HCFA 1500/UB 92). Between April 23 and June 25, providers are encouraged to migrate their business processes away from the HCFA 1500 and UB 92 and deplete their form stock in preparation for exclusive use of the new forms. Providers may choose to fully transition to the new claim forms at any time during this two-month window.
This delay applies only to Medi-Cal and does not mean that physicians can put off applying for an NPI. On May 24, claims sumbitted to Medicare and private payors will be denied if submitted without an NPI. This is
not an idle threat. Physicians will have had two full years to get
their NPIs.
Click here for more details, including instructions on how to apply for an NPI.
Contact: CMA’s reimbursement help line, 888/401-5911.
4. New Courses Added to Leadership Academy Agenda
Three new courses, including two more practice management workshops, have been added to the agenda for this year’s Leadership Academy, April 13-15 in Monterey.
You can now choose from six practice management workshops to help you and your staff improve the efficiency — and the bottom line — of your medical practice. These powerful workshops were designed for physicians, office managers, administrators, and billing and collections personnel.
Practice Management Workshop Topics
- Financial Performance: How to Run Your Practice Like a Real Business
- Grow Your Business: Acquire the Tools You Need to Drive Practice Performance
- Fee Schedule Analysis: Maximizing Reimbursement and Profitability
- E&M Coding for Physicians: Key Guidelines for Proper Payment
- Electronic Health Records: Strategies for Success
- Taking Charge: Third-Party Payor Contract Analysis and Negotiation
Also new on the agenda is a workshop to help physicians understand Medicare’s new quality reporting program, which takes effect on July 1.
In addition, this year’s academy will offer presentations on an array of current health care topics, including physician leadership in quality improvement, hospital-physician relations, professionalism in medicine, health system reform, and more.
Attendees can earn up to 14 CME hours.
To register, visit http://www.cmanet.org/leadership or call 800/795-2262.
5. Free Web Seminar: Megatrends Impacting Medical Practices Today
CMA affinity partner athenahealth this morning hosted the first in a series of free web seminars for physicians. If you missed the live event, the webinar will be available beginning tomorrow for on demand playback at the athenahealth website.
During the one-hour seminar health economist and cofounder of athenahealth Todd Park discused current trends affecting health care, including:
- Inconsistent payor billing standards
- Pressure to adopt new clinical systems
- Pay for performance
- Consumer-directed health care
Mr. Park also provided recommendations on how physicians can collectively survive and harness forces to improve the health care landscape.
Click here for more information.
Contact: athenahealth, 866/817-5740.
6. Benefit of the Week: 30-35% Off Epocrates Clinical Reference Guides
CMA members receive 30 percent off one-year subscriptions and 35 percent off two-year subscriptions to any Epocrates product. Students and residents receive 50 percent off all Epocrates products. Group discounts are also available. Epocrates provides physicians with point-of-care access (via PDA, desktop computer, or the Internet) to up-to-date information on drugs, diseases, and diagnostics. Epocrates allows physicians to make better clinical decisions, saving time and improving quality of care. To receive your discount, log in to the CMA members-only website and follow the links to the Epocrates website.
Click here for more information on your membership benefits.
Contact: CMA’s membership hotline, 888/233-2937 or lgodward@cmanet.org.
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No. 2082
