2014 Medicare fee schedule confirms 24 percent cut Demonstrating yet again how broken the Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula is, physicians will face a 24 percent Medicare payment cut next year if Congress does not seize the opportunity to put a stop to the formula's annual threat of drastic payment cuts. This figure was confirmed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) last week, when the agency released its final physician fee schedule for 2014. The California Medical Association (CMA) is currently reviewing the final rule, which was released much later than usual because of ... December 3, 2013 Medicare Medicare, SGR, Sustainable Growth Rate, Advocacy, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
Highlights from AMA's 2013 interim meeting More than 1,000 physicians gathered just outside our nation's capital for the American Medical Association (AMA) interim meeting. The delegates debated a large number of resolutions, establishing new policies related to the Affordable Care Act, culturally and linguistically competent care and the Medicare sustainable growth rate. A number of these resolutions were put forward by the California delegation. Below are highlights of some of the resolutions adopted as policy. Medicare Payment Reform: Following robust discussion in various meeting venues, the AMA House of Delegates passed an amended resolution regarding repeal ... December 3, 2013 General American Medical Association, Cultural Competency, Health Insurance Exchange, ICD-10, Recovery Audit Contractor, SGR, Sustainable Growth Rate, AMA 0 0 Comment Read More »
Covered CA Materials for Your Patients The CMA Foundation (CMAF) and California Medical Association (CMA) have been awarded a grant from Covered California, the state's new health benefit exchange/marketplace. The purpose of the grant is to educate doctors and their health care team about Covered California and resources that are available for patients on where to go for additional information on programs that may be available based on their specific needs. The CMA Foundation, in partnership with San Bernardino County Medical Society, can provide you with patient education materials to distribute to patients asking for ... December 2, 2013 General CMA Foundation, Covered CA, Covered California 0 0 Comment Read More »
Online payment portals: Physicians beware Recently, a number of payors have begun to offer online payment portals that allow patients to pay for physician services via the Internet. Physicians should be aware, however, that while these online payment portals typically do not charge setup fees for participating, physicians will be assessed a per transaction fee, similar to the transaction fees associated with credit card or merchant transactions. Aetna, for example, partnered with Citi to provide an online patient health care payment option called Money² for Health. This online payment tool will allow patients to securely ... November 18, 2013 General Payment Plan, United Healthcare, Aetna 0 0 Comment Read More »
November 18-24 is 'Get Smart About Antibiotics Week' With the cold and flu season underway, now is a good time to review appropriate antibiotic use. In fact, the week of November 18-24, 2013, is "Get Smart About Antibiotics Week" – a campaign to highlight the problem of antibiotic resistance and the importance of appropriate antibiotic use. The California Medical Association (CMA) Foundation's Alliance Working for Antibiotic Resistance Education (AWARE) project has teamed up with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and others to bring attention to this growing concern. The "Get Smart About Antibiotics Week" campaign aims to ... November 18, 2013 General Antibiotics 0 0 Comment Read More »
Stepping Up to Leadership Training, March 6-8, 2014 The Stepping Up to Leadership program was created by the Institute for Medical Quality and the PACE Program at the University of California at San Diego in response to a commonly expressed need for better, more practical hands-on training for medical staff leaders. “For years, physicians asked for a program that would empower them to take on leadership roles,” said William Norcross, MD, founder of the PACE Program and an originator of the conference. A grant from The Physicians Foundation helped the conference’s organizers meet their goal of making ... November 15, 2013 General IMQ, Institute for Medical Quality, medical staff leaders, PACE Program, Stepping Up to Leadership 0 0 Comment Read More »
NEPO launches regional Covered California health care provider outreach and education meetings The CMA Foundation's Network of Ethnic Physician Organizations (NEPO) is hosting its first Covered California provider outreach and education meeting December 7, 2013, at 9:30 a.m. at the Kaplan Medical offices in Pasadena. Physicians and other health care providers and their staff are invited to attend this 2.5 hour educational session. Participants will learn more about Covered California and how they can help patients get health insurance coverage. Registration is free, but space is limited, so secure your spot today. For more information or to register, visit http://www.eventbrite.com/event/9019901769. This is first ... November 6, 2013 General Covered California, Health Benefit Exchange, Network of Ethnic Physician Organizations, Health Care Reform, Health Insurance Exchange, NEPO 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA Medi-Cal Survival Guide helps physicians understand numerous program changes Over the past year, there have been a number of changes for Medi-Cal patients and for the physicians who treat them. There will be more changes in 2014 as well. To help physicians understand the impact these changes will have on their practices, the California Medical Association (CMA) has published a Medi-Cal Survival Toolkit. The toolkit contains a summary on many of the changes, important dates, options for physicians and links to important resources. The toolkit is available to free to members in CMA's online resource library. Contact: CMA's reimbursement helpline, (888) ... November 6, 2013 Medi-Cal Healthy Families, Medi-Cal, Insurance/Reimbursement 0 0 Comment Read More »
November is national COPD awareness month In recognition of national COPD awareness month, the California Medical Association (CMA) Foundation is encouraging physicians to talk to their patients about simple measures they can take to improve their lung function. COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is a serious lung disease that makes it difficult to breathe. Also known as emphysema and chronic bronchitis, it recently surpassed stroke as the third leading cause of death in the United States. More than 12 million people are diagnosed with COPD and an additional 12 million are likely to have the disease ... November 6, 2013 General Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, COPD, Public Health 0 0 Comment Read More »
Both houses of Congress working together in an unprecedented collaboration to repeal SGR http:///On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee released an unprecedented bipartisan and bicameral “discussion draft” proposal that would fully repeal the flawed Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula. The draft legislation would not provide automatic payment increases for 10 years. However, starting in 2016 physicians can choose to participate in new payment models (such as medical homes) and qualify for 5 percent annual bonuses. In 2017 and beyond, physicians remaining in the fee-for-service program can participate in a new “value-based performance payment program,” which ... November 5, 2013 Medicare Insurance/Reimbursement, Medicare, SGR, Sustainable Growth Rate, Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
