Welcome to the first edition of the President’s Corner! I am grateful to Bharat Kumar, MD, MME, FACP, FAAAAI, RhMSUS, and the editors of The Rheumatologist for their support and encouragement in allowing me to have this opportunity each month to come together with rheumatologists and rheumatology health professionals. So why the President’s Corner? In…
RheumPAC Helps ACR ‘Stand Up for What’s Important’
Kaitlyn Brittan, MD, the newest chair of the ACR’s RheumPAC Committee, views advocacy as a core principle of caring for patients, with meaningful, real-world impact.
Beth Jonas, MD, Brings Longstanding Workforce Expertise to Committee Chair Role
Dr. Jonas has long sought bold and innovative approaches to workforce challenges in rheumatology. As new chair of the Workforce Solutions Committee, she aims to increase the role of advanced practice providers in rheumatology practices and reduce wait times for specialty care.
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Complex, Multi-Challenging Disease
Reviewing the research presented at ACR Convergence 2024 WASHINGTON, D.C.—Despite significant advances that have taken place over the past several years, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) still presents great challenges to rheumatologists, given its unpredictable clinical course and the eventual consequences the disease itself and the complexity of its treatments impose on individual patients, their families…
Can Cultural Humility Conquer Systemic Inequity in Pediatric Rheumatology?
Doctors and patient advocates urged the rheumatology community to address the drastic inadequacies in care faced by marginalized people in a session held at ACR Convergence 2024.
Multiple ACR-Supported Policies Advance at Interim AMA House of Delegates Meeting
At a busy and highly successful interim meeting of the AMA House of Delegates, an ACR-cosponsored resolution that calls for exceptions to therapy caps was passed and will become AMA policy. Other areas addressed include payment parity for telemedicine and MIPS reform.
As ARP President, Adam Goode, PT, DPT, PhD, Will Draw on Power of Interdisciplinary Members
The diversity of the ARP’s membership is what originally drew Adam Goode, PT, DPT, PhD, to the organization, enticed him to begin volunteering more than a decade ago and now galvanizes him as he becomes the new ARP president.
New ACR President Carol Langford, MD, MHS, Has Optimistic Outlook for Future of Rheumatology
“At my very first annual meeting of the ACR, I saw how the ACR brought the whole rheumatology community together, and I knew right away that it was an organization that I wanted to be a part of,” Dr. Langford says. In late November, she became the 88th president of the ACR and looks forward to continuing its focus on education, research and building community.
After Coalition Meeting, CMS Leadership Agrees to Closer Look at Underwater Biosimilars
The Underwater Biosimilars Coalition shared with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services concerns about problems arising from the average sales price payment methodology and discussed potential options for addressing these challenges.
The ACR Joins Members of Congress in Call for Medicare Reimbursement Reform
A letter from 233 bipartisan members of Congress last week urged House leadership to replace the 2.8% cut proposed in the FY2025 Physician Fee Schedule with an annual payment update reflective of inflationary pressures before the end of the year. Boost this effort by contacting your legislator today.