Beginning in April 2018, Medicare patients will receive newly designed Medicare identification cards that replace their Social Security numbers (SSNs) with unique, randomly assigned, alphanumeric identification numbers. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is making the change to protect patients 65 and older from exposing their SSNs in efforts to “help prevent fraud,…
Carina Stanton, BSJ, MA, is a freelance science journalist based in Denver. She has been writing about science for more than 16 years, covering a range of healthcare topics, including rheumatology, surgery, nursing and executive leadership. Her work has appeared in newspapers, newsletters, trade and consumer magazines, books and peer-reviewed journals. Carina has also covered a range of other science news topics, including environmental science, marine biology and archaeology. She has conducted her own research in historical archaeology in Great Britain and Scotland and worked on dig sites in Northern Ireland and Wales. As a former mass media science and engineering fellow for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Carina is inspired to advance the public understanding of science. When she is not working indoors, Carina is happy spending time outside with her husband and two young children to hike, mountain bike and help her children grow their passion for nature.
Articles by Carina Stanton
Where OA & Depression Intersect
Pain, limited mobility and lower quality of life—these aspects of living with osteoarthritis may result in severe depression. New research from Alan Rathbun, PhD, MPH, may enable physicians to better understand the intersection of physical and mental health so they can improve overall patient care…
ACR Opposes UnitedHealthCare’s Move to End Consultation Reimbursement
Effective for claims with dates of service on or after Oct. 1, 2017, UnitedHealthCare (UHC) plans to no longer reimburse consultation services represented by CPT codes 99241–99245 and 99251–99255. In lieu of a consultation services procedure code, UHC says it will “reimburse the appropriate evaluation and management (E/M) procedure code which describes the office visit,…
Hundreds of Diseases. One Voice.
Continually building awareness and understanding of rheumatic diseases is critical to both our profession and patient care, according to Kelly Weselman, MD, a rheumatologist in Smyrna, Ga., and a passionate advocate involved in planning the ACR’s annual Rheumatic Disease Awareness Month (RDAM). “Unlike cancer patients, whose disease is well known, patients battling a rheumatic disease…
How to Fuel Engaged Patient Dialogue
“Too often, a patient may feel too intimidated to ask a question,” says Ara Dikranian, MD. Here are considerations and communication techniques rheumatologists can use to encourage greater patient understanding and engagement…
The Walk from the Waiting Room
For a rheumatology practice, rooming time can be leveraged to improve efficiency and patient care. Christie Bartels, MD, MS, and colleagues have studied this time frame and developed data-based tips and tools to decrease variation among staff and streamline practices…
Advocating for CMMI Reform, Looking Ahead to Alternative Payment Models
The work of health policy reform is a marathon, not a sprint. The ACR is encouraged by the forward progress being made in collaboration with the American Medical Association and other physician-led organizations within the Healthcare Leaders for Accountable Innovation in Medicare and Medicaid coalition (known as the AIM coalition) to advocate for physicians’ ability…
5 Easy-to-Implement Quality Improvement Projects for Rheumatology Practices
Quality assurance and quality improvement (QA/QI) work makes sense to focus on. However, finding the time and resources for QI projects is not always easy. Until now, the business case for QI in rheumatology practice has not always been clear. However, this is changing with implementation of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA)…
Strategies for Successful Joint Replacement Surgery
Collaboration among all providers—surgeon, rheumatologist, physical therapist, etc.—is essential for patients with a rheumatic disease who are about to undergo total joint arthroplasty to reach their goals, including reduced pain and improved mobility…
Speaking Out for IPAB Repeal
On May 11, ACR President Sharad Lakhanpal, MBBS, MD, and other College members will be in Washington, D.C., to speak in support of proposed legislation or a joint resolution that would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). IPAB Defined In an attempt to control future Medicare expenditures, one element of the Patient Protection and…