Anti-MOC Laws Picking Up Steam Across the United States
Conclusion
The anti-MOC rhetoric is real, and heated. A quick google search shows at least two websites dedicated to the anti-MOC movement. Change Board Recertification, seems to collect articles about MOC and re-publish them all in one convenient website. The DOCS4Patient Care Foundation shows that – presumably in an attempt to gain more followers – proponents of anti-MOC legislation like to frame the issue as “right to care” laws, an interesting tactic.
Proponents of the anti-MOC laws believe that MOC restricts patient access by forcing older physicians into early retirement. It is our belief, however, that wit...
Source: Policy and Medicine - June 28, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
CMS Releases Proposed MACRA Rule (Including CME as Improvement Activity)
On Tuesday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the long-anticipated proposed rule updating the Quality Payment Program – the program implementing the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) – for 2018. The rule continues the CMS trend of allowing more and more physicians to delay MACRA implementation, as many smaller and rural providers have said their lack of capital and resources make compliance difficult.
MACRA will eliminate the sustainable growth formula and replace it with a .5% annual rate increase through 2019, when physicians are encouraged to shift to either ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - June 21, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
CMS Releases Proposed 2018 MACRA Rule (Including QI CME as Improvement Activity)
On Tuesday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the long-anticipated proposed rule updating the Quality Payment Program – the program implementing the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) – for 2018. The rule continues the CMS trend of allowing more and more physicians to delay MACRA implementation, as many smaller and rural providers have said their lack of capital and resources make compliance difficult.
MACRA will eliminate the sustainable growth formula and replace it with a .5% annual rate increase through 2019, when physicians are encouraged to shift to either ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - June 21, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
California " Gift " Ban Bill Amended to Drop Fines and Requires Accreditation for Education Events
California has not been known to be the most “business friendly” state in the union in recent history. We recently wrote about legislation passed in the California state senate that was intended to restrict pharmaceutical companies from giving gifts and incentives to medical professionals. The bill prohibits drug manufacturers from offering or giving a gift to a health care provider.
The bill also prohibits a manufacturer or an entity on behalf of a manufacturer from providing a fee, payment, subsidy, or other economic benefit to a health care provider in connection with the provider’s participation in research. Exe...
Source: Policy and Medicine - June 16, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
MOC - It's All About the $$ - Yes to SB 1148
Oppose Vendor Greed That Isn ’t Shownto Improve QualitySenate Bill 1148, scheduled for debate on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives today, clearly states that hospitals and health plans cannot use maintenance of certification (MOC) to differentiate among physicians for payment, contracting, or credentialing. The bill prohibits the state from using MOC as a requirement for state licensure or renewal. It would, however, allow MOC requirements if facilities or teaching faculty need them for specialty designation or accreditation.The bill ' s author is Sen. Dawn Buckingham, MD (R-Lakeway). As a practicing opthal...
Source: TMA Blogged Arteries - May 23, 2017 Category: Health Management Authors: Steve Levine Source Type: blogs
ABIM and ACCME Increase CME and QI Opportunities for Physicians
The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) and the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) have expanded their collaboration to recognize more accredited continuing medical education (CME) for Maintenance of Certification (MOC). With this expansion, accredited providers are now able to register activities that meet ABIM’s requirements for Medical Knowledge and/or Practice Assessment MOC.
ABIM and ACCME expanded their collaboration to increase the number and diversity of accredited CME activities that earn both CME credit and MOC points in support of physicians participa...
Source: Policy and Medicine - May 10, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
ACCME Announces New Logo and Provider Marks
The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) has introduced a new logo, tagline, and color palette that emphasize the lifelong journey of learning and celebrate the continued trajectory of the continuing medical education (CME) community. New marks are also available for CME providers to communicate their accreditation status.
The initiative is part of the ACCME’s efforts to build visibility for the CME community and communicate the value of accreditation and accredited CME. The new visual identity is designed to convey the transformation in accredited CME to better meet the needs of clinicians and...
Source: Policy and Medicine - April 27, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
AMA and ACCME Announce Call for Comment on Proposal
Yesterday, the American Medical Association (AMA) and the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) issued a call for comment on their joint proposal to simplify and align their expectations for accredited continuing medical education (CME) activities that offer the AMA PRA Category One CreditTM. The proposal for alignment attempts to encourage innovation and flexibility in accredited CME, while continuing to ensure that activities meet educational standards and are independent of commercial influence.
The proposal is aimed at allowing accredited CME providers to introduce and blend new instructional ...
Source: Policy and Medicine - April 26, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Providers and patients must listen to the evidence
There is an interesting article from ProPublica called “When Evidence Says No, but Doctors say Yes” making the rounds. It’s about the number of doctors who disbelieve, don’t know or don’t care about medical evidence to the detriment of patients. I do not find any fault with the article. I rail against this daily. I have my whole professional life. It is actually a big reason why I blog because I regularly hear: “I didn’t know that,” from providers or “If I had only known,” from patients. I love when people tell me they took in something I wrote to show their provider. I love when a doctor tells ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - April 22, 2017 Category: Journals (General) Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/jennifer-gunter" rel="tag" > Jennifer Gunter, MD < /a > Tags: Physician Primary care Source Type: blogs
What life is like for this retired physician
I have now been out of the active medicine for two years. I still have dreams about being a doctor and practice. I don’t think you can do the same thing day in and day out for 40 years and not have it be a part of who you are. I am still asked my opinion by friends and family about their health issues, and frankly, I find my fund of knowledge is slipping away. I did renew my license in the state of Florida that required 40 hours of continuing medical education. (I did mine mostly online.) I don’t know if I will renew it again in 2019.
Being on Medicare, I visit doctors — probably too often. I have become ...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - April 16, 2017 Category: Journals (General) Authors: < a href="http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/david-mokotoff" rel="tag" > David Mokotoff, MD < /a > Tags: Physician Primary care Source Type: blogs
Physicians and opioids: Part of the solution, but challenges ahead
With more than 200 million prescriptions for opioid medications being written every year, it’s hard to escape the notion that physicians must share some of the blame for creating the opioid epidemic facing the nation.
The criticism has come from many quarters. Editorial writers have pointed the finger of blame, as have high-ranking elected officials. More than a third of the American public think doctors are at fault, and even members of our own profession have acknowledged the unwitting complicity of physicians.
There’s no denying it. Despite our well-intentioned motivation to care for our patients and treat their pai...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - April 13, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: James S. Gessner, MD Tags: Addiction Health Health care Mental Health Source Type: blogs
ACCME President and CEO Calls for Healthcare Leaders to Leverage CME
In conclusion, Dr. McMahon notes, “Healthcare leaders who recognize the strategic value of education can expect a meaningful return on their investment – not only in terms of the quality and safety of their clinicians’ work but also in the spirit and cohesiveness of the clinicians who work at the institution.”
Related StoriesNew Report Demonstrates Effectiveness of IPCEACCME Report Released on ER/LA Opioid REMS CE ActivitiesRockpointe and Potomac Center for Medical Education Author an Article in the Alliance Almanac (Source: Policy and Medicine)
Source: Policy and Medicine - April 3, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
The foremost defender of quacks is concerned that doctors won ’ t be able to get CME credit for studying quackery any more
The legal world's foremost defender of quacks issues a warning that the ACCME will stop accrediting continuing medical education courses that teach quackery credulously. Gee, he says that as though it would be a bad thing. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - March 27, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Complementary and alternative medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking ACCME medical education quackademic medicine Richard Jaffe Source Type: blogs
Dr. Janet Woodcock on the Opioid Epidemic
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) offers a podcast series, known as the Director’s Corner, that features the director of the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER). One of the most recent episodes featured an interview with Dr. Janet Woodcock, by Colleen Labbe from the CDER Office of Communications, who discussed the way the FDA has been addressing the opioid epidemic affecting many communities around the United States.
CDER’s Response to FDA Labeling Changes
One of the first questions asked of Dr. Woodcock was what, exactly, CDER did with regard to the various opioid safety labeling ch...
Source: Policy and Medicine - March 20, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
ASCO Removes Restrictions on Researchers ’ Conflict of Interest
Discussion on Open Payments by Philadelphia-Region DoctorsFDA: Draft Guidance - Procedures for Evaluating Appearance Issues and Granting Authorizations for Participation in FDA Advisory Committees (Source: Policy and Medicine)
Source: Policy and Medicine - March 5, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
