HHS issues "provider conscience" regulations Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced it would form a new division within the HHS Office of Civil Rights to focus on provider conscience and religious freedom exemptions. Following this announcement, HHS released a proposed rule that would expand existing protections for physicians and other providers who object to performing certain health care procedures. The proposed rule covers a wide array of existing federal laws that provide conscience protections, including those related to abortion, sterilization, assisted suicide and the performance of advance directives. The California ... January 30, 2018 General Abortion, Regulatory Advocacy, Reproductive issues, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 0 0 Comment Read More »
California Medical Association Endorses Eleni Kounalakis for California Lt. Governor Today, the California Medical Association (CMA) endorsed Eleni Kounalakis’ 2018 bid to become California’s next Lieutenant Governor. “The California Medical Association is proud to support Eleni Kounalakis for Lieutenant Governor,” said CMA President Theodore M. Mazer, M.D. “Today’s political environment demands leaders focused on pragmatic solutions to improve quality access to health care, address our looming physician shortage crisis and champion public health initiatives. We believe Eleni has the passion, temperament and experience to best represent California’s citizens and interests.” “I am so honored to receive the endorsement of the California ... January 30, 2018 CMA, General Election, Political Advocacy 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMS announces new voluntary bundled payment model The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced a new voluntary bundled-payment model. Called the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) Advanced Model, it will be considered an advanced alternative payment model (APM) under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). This new, voluntary model comes less than two months after the CMS eliminated two mandatory bundled-payment models created during the Obama administration. MACRA’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) created two tracks for physician payment – the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and Advanced APM track. Under ... January 30, 2018 Managed Care, Medicare Alternative Payment Models (APM), MACRA, Medicare, Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) 0 0 Comment Read More »
DMHC orders 600,000 patients transferred from troubled medical group The California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) issued a cease-and-desist order on December 26, 2017, requiring nine health plans to terminate their contracts with Employee Health Systems (EHS) Medical Group Inc. This order comes after SynerMed—a company closely affiliated with EHS—was accused of blocking patient access to specialists to hold down costs. EHS has 600,000 patients statewide—90 percent of whom are Medi-Cal managed care patients. The health plans affected by this order must transfer all EHS patients to different health care providers by early February 2018. The plans were ... January 30, 2018 General, Managed Care, Medi-Cal Department of Managed Health Care, Managed Care, Medi-Cal 0 0 Comment Read More »
FDA restricts use of cough and cold medicines with codeine or hydrocodone for kids The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said today that cough and cold medicines containing codeine and hydrocodone should not be prescribed to children and adolescents because of serious safety risks posed by the opioid ingredients. The FDA also announced that such products will now be required to carry "boxed warnings" – the FDA’s strongest warning – that highlight the risks misuse, abuse, addiction, overdose, death, and slowed or difficult breathing. According to the FDA, it is taking this action after an extensive review that determined the risks associated with ... January 30, 2018 General Food and Drug Administration, Opioids, Pediatrics 0 0 Comment Read More »
Save the date for the 2018 California Immunization Coalition Summit The California Immunization Coalition (CIC) will be hosting its annual Summit April 16-17, 2018, at the Sawyer Hotel in Sacramento. The summit theme will be Onward and Upward and will focus on utilizing public health successes to engage with new partners, grow the coalition network, and educate and support local communities. The CIC is a non-profit, public-private partnership dedicated to achieving and maintaining full immunization protection for all Californians to promote health and prevent serious illness. For updates and registration, visit www.immunizeca.org/about/cic-summit. January 30, 2018 General Immunization, Public Health, Vaccination 0 0 Comment Read More »
It's not too late to get a flu shot With widespread influenza activity in California, physicians are encouraged to remind patients that it’s not too late to get their flu shot. Although influenza season usually peaks between December and February, flu activity can occur as late as May. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for the body to respond fully. Vaccine effectiveness does vary for the different strains and year by year. Vaccination will still prevent infection in a large number of cases. If disease does occur after vaccination, the vaccine can reduce the severity of flu symptoms. An ... January 30, 2018 General Flu, Immunization, Influenza, Public Health, Vaccination 0 0 Comment Read More »
Earn 6.5 CME at Anaheim cardiology conference: Landmark Clinical Trials Revisited On February 16-17, 2018, California physicians have the opportunity to earn 6.5 continuing medical education (CME) units during the “Landmark Clinical Trials Revisited: 3 and 5 Year Results” cardiology conference at the Fullerton Marriott in Anaheim. Attendees will learn about the main advances in cardiology over the last five years and how these advances have impacted the major disease processes in cardiovascular medicine. Put on by Vimal I. Nanavati, M.D., a long-time California Medical Association (CMA) member, CMA Political Action Committee (CALPAC) board member and CMA Organized Medical Staff Section delegate, ... January 30, 2018 General Continuing Medical Education 0 0 Comment Read More »
CMA On-Call: Retention of Medical Records California regulations regarding retention of medical records in a physician’s office are a perennial hot topic in the California Medical Association (CMA) On-Call health law library. To ensure physicians understand their rights and obligations under the law, CMA published On-Call document #4005, “Retention of Medical Records,” which discusses major issues raised by the retention, abandonment, theft and destruction of medical or health insurance information and physician practice business records. Issues covered include statutory record retention requirements, the rules applicable to records abandoned in bankruptcy or otherwise, recommended retention periods, ... January 30, 2018 CMA, General CMA On-Call, CPLH, Medical Records 0 0 Comment Read More »
#CMAdocs: We want to tell your story! California’s doctors aren’t just health care and medical experts. They’re also community leaders, philanthropists, entrepreneurs and policymakers dedicated to ensuring that patients receive quality health care at an affordable cost. And CMA wants to share your story! Our #CMAdocs campaign highlights physicians leading the charge to help their communities thrive. We profile these stories on our website, in our bi-weekly newsletter, on social media and with local media. Share your story or celebrate a deserving colleague today! January 30, 2018 CMA CMAdocs, Future CMAdocs 0 0 Comment Read More »
