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Textile Workers at Higher Risk for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Lisa Rapaport  |  

(Reuters Health)—Breathing textile dust on the job is linked to an almost tripled risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a Malaysian study suggests. While smoking is a known risk factor for RA, the findings add to evidence suggesting that environmental factors could trigger RA in some people, the researchers note in their report in Annals…

U.S. Appeals Court: Hospitals Can Be ‘Urban’ & ‘Rural’ at Same Time

Jonathan Stempel  |  

NEW YORK (Reuters)—The federal appeals court in New York struck down a U.S. regulation that made it harder for hospitals to provide better medical care at lower cost by claiming they were “rural” for some purposes and “urban” for others. Thursday’s decision by the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a victory for hospitals…

1% of U.S. Doctors Responsible for a Third of Malpractice Payments

Gene Emery  |  

(Reuters Health)—Just one out of every 100 U.S. doctors is responsible for 32% of the malpractice claims that result in payments to patients, according to a comprehensive study of 15 years’ worth of cases. And when a doctor has to pay out one claim, the chances are good that the same physician will soon be…

With Genetic Testing Results, More May Be Better

Kathryn Doyle  |  

(Reuters Health)—When people undergo genetic testing to find out whether they’re at risk for a specific disease, doctors often wonder how much information to give them. What if the genetic testing results reveal a risk for a disease the patient hadn’t been wondering about? Geneticists are “grappling with what to do with all the information…

2016 Deadline Imposed by Meaningful Use Program Requires Immediate Attention: Sign Up for 2 Registries by Feb. 29 or Expect Financial Penalty

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Meaningful Use may be changing but it is not going away—yet. Rheumatologists must sign up with two of three registries by Feb. 29 or pay significant financial penalties for not complying with this specific part of the Meaningful Use requirements. The three choices for registries include the Immunization Registry, the Syndromic Surveillance Registry and a…

How to Avoid Legal Pitfalls

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In busy rheumatology practices, mountains of paperwork for insurance companies and federal healthcare programs make it hard to keep track of what’s legal. Missing documentation is the most common way to spark an investigation. Here are a few considerations to help you avoid legal pitfalls…

Ethics Forum: Physicians Face Ethical Quandary Discussing Poor Prognosis with Patients

Rashmi Shah, MD, Jennifer Barton, MD, & Robert H. Shmerling, MD  |  

Over the course of a month, you diagnose systemic sclerosis in two newly evaluated patients. Their responses to the news could not be more different. Patient 1 is a previously healthy 55-year-old man who is an avid bicyclist and skier. He presents with a several-month history of rapidly progressive skin tightening extending to the proximal…

ICD-10: An Ode to Code

Robert H. Shmerling, MD  |  

When the code that you need is not clear Just keep this poem quite near If you’re struck by a parrot Just grin and bear it ICD-10 has you covered my dear. W61.02XA Struck by parrot, initial encounter And if you’re ever struck by a cow I don’t even want to know how Rest assured:…