Recipient of a Rheumatology Research Foundation Scientist Development Award, Ashira Blazer, MD, focuses her research on racial and ethnic disparities in lupus. She looks beyond socioeconomic differences, differences in lifestyles and access to care to better understand the biologically determined differences behind disparate outcomes. With funding from the Foundation, she was able to investigate the…
This year, the American Medical Association (AMA) convened its annual House of Delegates (HOD) meeting June 8–12 in Chicago to discuss emerging and public health issues. Among the many policies and practices discussed: two resolutions put forth by the ACR on behalf of ACR and ARP members, one concerning prior authorization and another concerning step…
Take the challenge. Scenario B is billable and should be coded as G2012. The ICD-10 is M06.09. As of January 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has allowed a new code to be billed for a brief communication for virtual check-in by a physician or a qualified healthcare professional who can provide an…
Scenario A A 67-year-old, female Medicare patient diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, previously without rheumatoid factor, calls the rheumatologist’s office to get an update on the lab tests taken when she was last seen in the office two weeks before. The patient was tested for C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) and…
The world we live in necessitates information be communicated in a quick and easy manner. This remains true in the healthcare setting. The ability to text or email staff and patients has become a priority for many healthcare entities. However, maintaining patient privacy and confidentiality is essential to ensure we meet compliance standards. Although emailing…
The Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) was launched in 2014 as a public-private partnership to spur development of new therapeutic options for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Five years in, this unprecedented public-private effort is achieving its major milestones and yielding tools to accelerate potential new drug discoveries. The Rheumatology Research Foundation is…
The American Medical Association’s (AMA) Relative Value Scale (RVS) Update Committee (RUC) and Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Committee currently meet three times a year each to keep the CPT code set up to date, and to review the valuation of all the codes for the physician fee schedule. The two-step meetings of both the CPT Editorial…
On May 16, ACR and ARP leaders serving on the Board of Directors, Affiliate Society Council, Government Affairs Committee, Committee on Rheumatologic Care, RheumPAC and Insurance Subcommittee will go to Capitol Hill to advocate on behalf of the College’s membership and our patients. The group represents 31 states and the District of Columbia, and will…
The RISE 2019 Dashboard features an updated user experience and new functionality. We invite current RISE users to join a free webinar during the month of May to learn about these new features. Please register to join us at these any of these times: Wednesday, May 15 at noon CDT/1 p.m. EDT; Thursday, May 16 at…
A 66-year-old female patient returns for a second infusion of rituximab for her diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis in multiple sites. She is rheumatoid factor positive. She says the pain in her knees, elbows and neck has slightly improved. She rates the severity of her pain at a 7 on a 10-point scale, which is an…