Volume 116, No. 12: December 2020 Edition
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They Said It...
"It depends on the effectiveness of the vaccine, people's willingness to take the vaccine and any therapy to combat the virus. It really depends on treatment and prevention with the vaccine." Dr. Caroline Johnson, acting deputy health commissioner of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, on the effect a COVID-19 vaccine could have on surgery protocols. You can read her comments and more in our Fall 2020 Edition of Philadelphia Medicine magazine.
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How to Get Paid Upfront and Focus More on Patient Care |
Upfront direct-patient payment just might be the future of health care programs. Direct-pay eliminates billing and other administrative hassles, allowing physicians to focus on what is most important: patient care. Join the folks from Sibi Health on Wednesday, Dec. 16, from 12:30 to 1 p.m. for a virtual session and lively discussion about how to leverage direct-patient payment for your practice. Click here to register. New networks such as Sibi Health ( www.SibiHealth.com) help practices access the growing market of more than 100 million Americans who pay $109 billion out of their own pocket for office-based care. |
Seeking CME Speakers/Presenters |
The Philadelphia County Medical Society seeks presentation proposals for its continuing medical education 2021 programming year, open to all members, including residents and fellows. The Society aims to offer relevant, innovative CME, covering research, technology and emerging clinical topics that will improve physician practice and patient care. All CME proposals will be reviewed by the PCMS CME Committee to determine the best fit for the Society's programming needs. Click here to apply to be a presenter today. |
Emergency Responder Self-Care Plan: Behavioral Health PPE |
Taking care of oneself is difficult during the pandemic, where responders experience additional stresses related to home and personal circumstances as well as those brought on by challenging mission demands. This fillable form includes steps that physicians can take to stay healthy and fit for duty while caring for others. The form can be completed before each day and kept handy to help apply coping strategies when things get tough. The Help the Helpers Program was recently restarted, which is an online support group for frontline health-care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sessions can be anonymous and are offered twice a week. Click here to register and find the next available sessions. |
Tell Congress Now is Not the Time to Cut Medicare Payments |
Contact your congressperson today and ask them to support the Holding Providers Harmless from Medicare Cuts During COVID-19 Act (H.R. 8702). As physicians continue to battle the worsening COVID-19 pandemic, the last thing we should have to worry about is cuts to their Medicare payments. Unfortunately, without Congressional action before Jan. 1, that nightmare scenario will become reality, since under current law the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is required to make budget-neutrality adjustments to the Medicare physician payment schedule whenever changes in relative value units (RVUs) generates a payment increase or decrease by $200 million. To learn more or take action now, go to the AMA Physicians Grassroots Network website. |
Rejection of General Assembly's COVID-19 Safe Harbor |
At the end of November, Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed the proposed Liability Protections Bill, HB 1737. The General Assembly understood that in the current environment, businesses and health-care providers, following government orders and guidelines, should be protected from opportunistic lawsuits. HB 1737 was well considered and debated, and passed to protect the heroes of this pandemic, while still holding accountable bad actors engaged in intentional misconduct or gross negligence who were not following health orders and guidelines. |
CMS Releases the 2021 Medicare Physician Payment Schedule Final Rule |
Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized an important policy change in the 2020 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule when it adopted current procedural terminology (CPT) guidelines to report office and outpatient evaluation and management (E/M) visits based on either medical decision-making or physician time and to reduce unnecessary documentation. These changes were made to be effective on Jan. 1, 2021, to allow for extensive education on use of the new guidelines and revised codes. CMS also adopted the relative value recommendations made by the American Medical Association (AMA)/Specialty Society relative value scale (RVS) Update Committee (RUC) for the office and outpatient E/M visits, which will lead to significant payment increases for these services next year. The January 2021 office visit guidelines and descriptions, an AMA Ed Hub tutorial and detailed RUC recommendations, data and a vote report are all posted on the AMA website at www.ama-assn.org/cpt-office-visits. |
You Can Now Enroll to be a COVID-19 Vaccination Program Provider |
PAMED Award Nominations |
The Pennsylvania Medical Society is accepting nominations for various honors, including the Distinguished Service Award, the Top Physicians Under 40 Award and the Community Voluntary Service Award. Deadline is Jan. 15. These annual awards are designed to recognize physicians for the great work they do. Online nomination forms can be found on PAMED's website at www.pamedsoc.org/awards. |
Calendar of Events
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December
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11 - MAT Preceptor Training for PCPs
Date: Part A: Friday, December 11
Part B: Wednesday, January 27
Time: Part A: 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Part B: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
This mini-residency training is free (including CME) and offers didactic training followed by an individually scheduled onsite observation or online clinical consultation with a faculty preceptor. It also offers content that is not covered in the buprenorphine waiver training, including: diversion, continued substance use, benzodiazepine use, point of care testing, harm reduction and pain management. Health Federation's Opioid Response Program and faculty presenters are available afterwards to support the integration of MOUD into your practice, to help problem solve, and connect you to resources and ongoing training.
Registrants must have already completed their waiver training and submit their license, resume, and waiver certificate prior to receiving their observation dates or consultation session.
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16 - How to Get Paid Upfront and Focus More on Patient Care
Date: Wednesday, December 16
Join PCMS and Sibi Health on Wednesday, December 16th from 12:30-1 PM for a virtual session and lively discussion about how to leverage direct payment for your practice and career.
Upfront direct pay is the future of healthcare payment because it eliminates billing and other administrative hassles, allowing physicians to focus on patient care. New networks like Sibi Health (www.SibiHealth.com) help practices access the growing market of 100M+ Americans who pay $109B out of their own pocket for office-based care alone.
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17 - What Physicians Need to Know About the COVID-19 Vaccine
Date: Thursday, December 17
Physicians will play an integral role in the distribution and implementation of a successful immunization COVID vaccine program. With the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccine anticipated in Philadelphia next week, PCMS has coordinated with the Philadelphia Department of Health an update on the vaccine distribution plan followed by a Q and A session with Deputy Health Commissioner Caroline C. Johnson, MD and team member, Jessica Caum, Program Manager for Public Health Preparedness.
Our Town Hall COVID-19 Update is open to physicians and you must register. Advanced questions are suggested, so please submit when you register. The program is anticipated to last 30 to 45 mins and will be held as a Zoom conference.
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