Weekly Roundup: In Case You Missed It
December 18, 2020
COVID-19 Updates

Alameda County received 13,650 doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week, of which 975 doses went to the City of Berkeley Local Health Jurisdiction. In Alameda County, vaccine doses will first be offered to hospital workers and 911 first responders who are at highest risk for exposure to the virus. In the City of Berkeley, the first doses will go to healthcare workers at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, the only hospital in the city. Residents and staff of residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs) in the County are registered in the Federal program to receive vaccines directly via Walgreens and CVS, which will begin this month. For more information about the prioritization framework in Alameda County, click here.

Contra Costa Health Services redistributed its 9,715 Pfizer vaccines initially to local hospitals. The first round of vaccines will go to workers in various Contra Costa emergency rooms, intensive care units, and other key medical facilities throughout the county. Nursing home residents and staff will be vaccinated through a federal partnership with CVS and Walgreens pharmacies by the end of December using a separate vaccine allocation not managed by the County. For more information on Contra Costa County's vaccine distribution plan, click here.

The Bay Area region fell below 15% remaining ICU bed capacity on Wednesday, prompting additional stay-at-home orders that began Friday and will continue through January 7. Alameda and Contra Costa counties had preemptively instituted stay-at-home orders effective December 6. The only region that has yet to trigger the stay-at-home order is Northern California, which had 21% remaining ICU capacity as of Friday.

Phase 3 distribution of another $24 billion from the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund is underway. The program is expected to distribute funds to more than 70,000 providers starting December 16 and continuing throughout January 2021. If you applied for Phase 3 funds by November 6, you can contact the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for information on the status of your application: Provider Support Line (866) 569-3522 (for TTY, dial 711).

The ACCMA and the California Medical Association (CMA) are continuing to provide PPE directly to medical practices in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. A two-month supply of N95 masks, surgical masks, isolation gowns, face shields, vinyl gloves, goggles, coveralls, and hand sanitizers may be ordered (click here for specs). PPE order forms are reviewed and if approved, will be shipped directly to medical offices. Only shipping and handling fees are charged for each individual case shipped. For groups with multiple offices, a separate form must be completed for each location. Please contact the ACCMA at accma@accma.org or (510) 654-5383 for more information.

CMA's COVID-19 Vaccine Resource Center can be accessed here.
Contact Your Member of Congress on End-of-Year Legislation

Congress did not meet its December 18 deadline to finalize year-end legislation that addresses COVID-19 relief, Medicare payment cuts, and surprise medical billing. Please contact your member of Congress to ask them not to forget frontline California physicians fighting to save patients from COVID-19. Physicians still need:
  1. More COVID relief in the Provider Relief Fund, more funding for PPE, testing, vaccines and patients.
  2. To stop 2021 Medicare payment cuts (up to 10% cuts to hospital-based physician specialists fighting COVID). Payment cuts means less patient access to care.
  3. A more balanced surprise billing solution. The current one cuts hospital-based physicians specialists fighting COVID by 15-20%. 

Please don’t let Congress go home without providing real help to physicians who are working tirelessly to save Californians - at great risk to themselves and their families. Click here to contact your member of Congress.
CMS Delays Enforcement of Controlled Substance E-Prescribing

Physicians now have until January 1, 2022 to comply with the law requiring electronic prescribing for schedule II-V controlled substances covered under a Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan. Click here tor more information, or contact the ACCMA at (510) 654-5383 or accma@accma.org.
State Surgeon General Issues Report on How Communities Can Address ACEs

The Office of the California Surgeon General has released the first California Surgeon General’s Report - Roadmap for Resilience: The California Surgeon General's Report on Adverse Childhood Experiences, Toxic Stress, and Health. The report serves as a blueprint for how communities, states, and nations can recognize and effectively address Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress as a root cause to some of the most harmful, persistent, and expensive societal and health challenges facing our world today. 
Encourage Your Patients to Enroll in Covered California

The California Medical Association is partnering with Covered California to encourage people to get health insurance coverage during the Covered California open enrollment period, which runs until January 31, 2021. An estimated 1.2 million uninsured people in the state are either eligible for financial help through the exchange, or qualify for low–cost or no–cost coverage. Please strongly encourage your patients and others to visit GetCovered2021.org to find the affordable health insurance that's best for them.
CDC Health Advisory on Increases in Fatal Drug Overdoses

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health advisory on Thursday on the substantial increases in drug overdose deaths across the United States, especially those involving synthetic opioids excluding methadone. The largest increase was recorded from March to May 2020, coinciding with implementation of widespread COVID-19 mitigation measures. The largest percentage increases occurred in the western United States. Significant increases in overdose deaths involved psychostimulants with abuse potential, such as methamphetamine. Read the CDC health advisory here.
Changes in the Hotels for Healthcare Workers (HFHCW) Program

Effective December 3, healthcare workers on travel status or traveling from out-of-state are no longer eligible for a state-paid hotel room. Also healthcare workers who work more than 150 miles away from home are no longer eligible for a state-paid hotel room. Other new program requirements are set to take effect on January 12, 2021.
WEBINARS & EVENTS
On-Demand Webinar Available Thursday, January 7
Members: FREE | Non-members: $49

Don’t miss your opportunity to make the most of the ever-changing healthcare reimbursement landscape! First you must understand the challenges you may be facing. Learn the important changes in Medicare for 2021 and how they may affect your practice reimbursement for the coming year(s). Changes are sometimes subtle, but they can have a lasting effect on your practice.

Presenter Mary Jean Sage will discuss:
  • Overall Payment Update
  • Medicare Telehealth Services
  • E & M Services: 2021 & beyond
  • Coding and documentation
  • Payment
  • Advanced Diagnostic Imaging: Latest update
  • MIPS 2021 – What you need to report

Click here to register.
Register by Friday, January 8 | Access Available Through February 22
FREE | Presented by VitalTalk and the Stupski Foundation

Thanks to generous support from the Stupski Foundation, Bay Area clinicians have complimentary access to the VitalTalk Mobile Advance Care Planning course this winter. The online mobile-friendly course is offered by VitalTalk, a national leader in serious illness communication training. The course takes 30-60 min to complete and uses a COVID clinical scenario to illustrate a core skill set that every physician who cares for seriously ill patients should master. Questions may be sent to: Wendy.Anderson@ucsf.edu. 

Click here to register.
Tuesday, January 12 | 12:15 - 1:15 PM
FREE | Presented by CMA

With modifications to the outpatient evaluation and management (E&M) coding guidelines set to take effect on January 1, 2021, physician practices should be ready for the most impactful overhaul of E&M codes in more than 25 years. In this webinar, Mary Jean Sage of the Sage Associates discusses the upcoming changes in E&M coding and other coding changes set to take effect in the new year.

Click here to register.
Thursday, January 14 | 12:15 - 1:15 PM
FREE | Presented by CMA

This installment of CMA's Telehealth Webinar Series for Small and Medium Sized Practices will focus on the future of pandemic-era telehealth laws and waivers. The webinar will also cover California's new telehealth parity law, AB 744, set to take effect on January 1, 2021, and and other new telehealth legislation in 2021.

Click here to register.
Thursday, January 21 | 6:00 - 7:00 PM
Members and Non-members: FREE

Interested in setting yourself up for financial success in the New Year? Join Gayatri Brar and and Natalie Schnuck of First Republic for a special presentation and Q&A to learn more. Whether you are focused on saving for retirement, purchasing a home, or paying down debt, First Republic can help you achieve your financial goals.
 
Gayatri Brar is a Managing Director and Banker at First Republic Bank. With over 12 years of experience in private banking and finance, Gayatri's passion is to take care of her clients and their needs. She does so by providing creative financial solutions to her clients and empowering them to accomplish their goals. Her expertise includes providing customer service tailored to each individual's unique situations with an emphasis on various types of lending (personal (real estate, student loan refinance, partner buy-in loans) and business lending). 
 
Natalie Schnuck is a Managing Director and Wealth Manager at First Republic Investment Management. In her role as Wealth Manager, Ms. Schnuck is responsible for helping clients target their financial needs and goals and gives special focus to strategic asset allocation and risk assessment analysis.
 
Click here to register.
Tuesday, February 2 | 6:00 - 7:00 PM
Members and Non-members: FREE | CME Available

This webinar will provide an opportunity for you to pause for a bit and, for a change, to think about yourself, despite the remarkable slurry of uncertainties and challenges in which we find ourselves. You will be able to visit or re-visit your own purpose and develop ways to move ahead.

To do this, we will explore your context, the Big Picture of culture and attitudes that shape society's, hospitals', and systems' policies about physicians. Importantly, we will also look at barriers that can hold you back and - the good news - boosters that can propel you forward. You will discover practical and achievable ways to replenish your energy, find opportunities, and reach toward your own goals. 

You are encouraged to submit questions in advance to help her address the range of clinician concerns and responses to the crisis. And you can also briefly share any personal tips and practices that are helping you during this difficult time. Please send your questions and comments to edanmeier.renew@gmail.com.

Speaker: Linda Hawes Clever, MD, MACP, is the founder of the nonprofit organization RENEW. She is a graduate of the Stanford Medical School and board certified in internal and occupational medicine. Dr. Clever is active at UC Berkeley and Stanford University, a member of the National Academy of Medicine, and the author of The Fatigue Prescription: Four Steps to Renewing Your Energy, Health and Life. 
 
Click here to register.
ACCMA's On-Demand Library

To access all on-demand programs, go to learning.accma.org.


St. Vincent de Paul Family Resource Center
2210 Gladstone Drive
Pittsburg, CA 94565
RotaCare is seeking health care volunteers for their free medical clinic in Pittsburg: Adult Medicine/ER Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants and RNs.

Provider malpractice insurance is provided free of charge.

Since 2011, the completely volunteer-run clinic has served the disadvantaged and uninsured of Contra Costa County who otherwise would have no access to health care.


For more information, go to rotacarebayarea.org/pittsburg or contact Clinic Operations Manager Yazmin Mejia at 925-439-2009 or pittsburg@rotacarebayarea.org.
QUESTIONS/CONCERNS?
Please contact ACCMA at 510-654-5383 or accma@accma.org with any questions or concerns you have.