SAN DIEGO—The 2017 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting kicked off on Nov. 4 with a rousing presentation by Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). A terrorist attack on U.S. soil, hurricane, cyberattack and pandemic were the four scenarios played out in late 2016, when NIAID conducted a tabletop…
Almost one year into my term on the ACR’s Political Action Committee, RheumPAC, I’m looking back and reflecting on what led me here. My early career was focused on learning the basics of clinical practice and building relationships with healthcare providers. Shortly after I completed my fellowship, I established goals to improve access to care…
One of the least recognized, most important (certainly for rheumatologists in the U.S. running their own practice), and hardest working committees at the ACR is the Insurance Subcommittee (ISC). Currently chaired by Sean Fahey, MD, and managed by ACR staff liaison Meredith Strozier, this group of dedicated volunteers monitors the insurance landscape, fields complaints from…
This month, the ACR ushers in its new president, David Daikh, MD, PhD. Dr. Daikh serves as the director of the Rheumatology Fellowship Training Program at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and as chief of the Rheumatology Division at the SFVA Medical Center, where he directs the Rheumatology Clinic. He graduated from the Oregon…
BOSTON (Reuters)—The billionaire founder of Insys Therapeutics Inc was arrested on Thursday on U.S. charges he participated in a scheme to bribe doctors to prescribe a fentanyl-based cancer pain drug, marking a step by authorities to fight the opioid epidemic. John Kapoor, Insys’ majority shareholder who stepped down as chief executive in January, was charged…
Running a rheumatology practice can be expensive. Here are some tips to save money on expenses, while still investing in the growth of your practice and avoiding penny pinching…
The FDA accepted for review a supplemental biologics license application for denosumab to treat patients with glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The rate of knee replacement surgery among older women with knee osteoarthritis is lower in those who take bisphosphonates than in those who don’t, according to a database study. Knee osteoarthritis accounts for 97% of all knee replacement surgeries. Trials of bisphosphonates in knee osteoarthritis have yielded conflicting results. To learn more,…
Greetings, advocates! Here’s a brief, interim hodgepodge of updates to keep you posted on government advocacy before the deluge of information swamps you in San Diego. The Next Big Thing: Part B Drug Reimbursements Medicare currently plans to adjust reimbursement of doctors in the MIPS program in 2019, not only based on E/M office services,…
The ACR is taking steps to clarify a proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that, as currently written, would consider the cost of Part B drugs when calculating physician reimbursement under the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). “The ACR is concerned about this, because large cuts to reimbursement for pass-through…