Webinar: ACR/CHEST ILD Guidelines in Practice| Video: All the Lonely People

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

CMS Implements Part B Modifiers for Biosimilars

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With the advent of biosimilars to the marketplace, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) now requires modifiers to identify the manufacturer of a biosimilar/biological product on Part B claims. Modifiers were put in place to provide the CMS with the necessary data needed to track claims payments, as well as the ability to…

RISE Data Use to Be Highlighted at 2017 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

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This year’s ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting, which takes place Nov. 3–8 in San Diego, features several opportunities to learn more about the ACR’s Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness (RISE) Registry, and the data and tools it offers rheumatologists. For the first time, RISE data will be presented at the Annual Meeting by rheumatologists outside of the ACR’s…

Rheumatology Coding Corner Answer: New Patient Prolonged Service Without Direct Patient Contact, Part 1

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Take the Challenge. ICD-10 Codes R76.1—Raised antibody titer L20.8—Other atopic dermatitis R20.2—Paresthesia of skin R20.1—Hypoesthesia of skin CPT Codes 99358 and 99359 Rationale The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) typically does not allow separate payment for physician services that do not require face-to-face time with a patient, but as of Jan. 1, 2017,…

Clinical Thought Process for Proper Medical Decision Making, Part 2

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In Part 1 of this series, we covered the vital role of medical decision making in determining the final level to bill for a patient encounter. Medical decision making is the key component in coding because it reflects the intensity of the provider’s cognitive labor. This implies that there’s an unseen component involved in the…

TNF Inhibitor Drug Tapering Successful in Some Patients with RA

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MADRID—Scores on the Health Assessment Questionnaire for Rheumatoid Arthritis (HAQ) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were independent predictors of whether patients could be tapered successfully from a TNF inhibitor after having reached remission of their RA, according to findings presented in a session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology. Researchers also developed a composite…

Whole-Body MRI, Ultrasound Imaging May Aid in Early Rheumatic Disease Diagnosis, Treatment

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MADRID—Researchers say that whole-body MRI could yield an earlier diagnosis of spondyloarthropathy (SpA) in patients with early inflammatory joint symptoms, according to findings presented in a poster session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). The approach could lead to earlier treatment and better outcomes, they say. Investigators at the University of Leeds recruited…

Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatments Show Mixed Results

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MADRID—The anti-IL6 “nanobody,” vobarilizumab, produced mixed results when used with methotrexate (MTX) and compared with MTX and placebo, according to results of a 24-week, double-blind Phase 2b study of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which were presented in an abstract session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). The drug missed its primary endpoint…

Effectiveness of Tofacitinib with Methotrexate, Adalimumab Therapy Evaluated in Patients with RA

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MADRID—Tofacitinib (a JAK inhibitor) used with methotrexate (MTX) is not inferior to adalimumab (a TNF inhibitor) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who’ve had an inadequate response to MTX alone, according to results of a Phase 3B/4 trial presented in a session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). The findings came in a one-year…

Skype-Based Biopsychosocial Treatments Help Save Physical Therapy Patients Time, Trouble

Elizabeth Hofheinz, MPH, MEd  |  

It’s a bit ironic that when injured people are in pain—and their mobility is reduced—they are often expected to travel to a physical therapy clinic. For millions of people, such trips are a burden. In Australia, however, some patients are “letting movement come to them.” Novel research from The University of Melbourne shows that taking…

Treat-to-Target Strategy Evaluated for Fibromyalgia Care

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Treat-to-target is a widely used approach for rheumatoid arthritis, in which rheumatologists prescribe treatments to reach established benchmarks of disease activity.1 Is it time for a similar approach for fibro­myalgia treatment, even though its pathogenesis, disease-activity measures and treatment algorithms are less well understood? Three fibromyalgia researchers present their case in a new paper, “Treat-to-Target…