Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) performance feedback, including scores and payment adjustment information, for the 2020 performance period is now available for review on the Medicare Quality Payment Program (QPP) website. In response to advocacy from the AMA and CMA, the CMS applied an automatic Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances hardship exception and reweighted the Cost Performance Category to zero in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 final score should reflect these COVID-19 flexibilities. CMS will update MIPS performance feedback and final scores for some clinicians for 2020 and the associated MIPS payment adjustment information. CMS will also extend the targeted review period, which usually goes through October 1. More details to come.

 

The CMA is asking physicians to lend their voices to help shape the regulations implementing Assembly Bill 890 (Wood), which became law on January 1, 2021, and authorizes two new types of nurse practitioners, 103 and 104 NPs, to perform certain functions without standardized procedures and physician supervision. It is critical that physician voices are heard as these regulations are developed. If you would like to sign CMA's joint letter, please email bpaplanus@cmadocs.org. The Board of Registered Nursing's Nurse Practitioner Advisory Committee is scheduled to meet and consider draft regulatory proposals on Tuesday, August 31.

 

Develop tangible leadership skills and enhance your leadership effectiveness over eight live online sessions, starting Tuesday, September 21, in the Bay Area Physician Leadership Program. Learn from nationally recognized experts and develop lasting connections with local colleagues, while earning up to 24 CME credits. Early registration discount of $100 ends on August 31. Member discount and group discounts are available. Click here to learn more. 

In their bid to represent one of the Bay Area’s most liberal pockets, attorney Janani Ramachandran and Alameda school board president Mia Bonta are battling to distinguish themselves in the August 31 runoff. The district includes most of Oakland, Alameda, and San Leandro. Bonta, who got 38% of the vote in the primary, is president of the Alameda Unified School District board and CEO of Oakland Promise, which strives to up the number of college graduates from Oakland. Ramachandran, an attorney who has represented tenants facing eviction and served on the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, received almost 24% of the vote. Although the delta variant has sent COVID-19 cases rising again, Bonta says keeping schools open now after their long-term closures is crucial to stabilizing families.

New Staff Onboarding Series

Now available! Current and new staff can receive on-demand training on HIPAA, OSHA, and customer service. Intended for all staff encountering patients in person or by telephone, this course covers customer service techniques, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). For questions, contact Jenn Mullins, Education and Event Associate, at jmullins@accma.org.

Click here to register. 

The California Medical Association's (CMA) wellness program (CMA Wellness) is pleased to launch free, online wellness engagement groups for health care providers who conduct patient screenings for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Treating patients with multiple ACEs or toxic stress can potentially impact your personal wellness and increase feelings of burnout. CMA Wellness's engagement groups will support providers by offering subject matter experts, best practices, and an open forum to share experiences, facilitated by trained, volunteer physicians. Each monthly webinar is organized around a prevailing theme with a stakeholder co-host to provide a variety of perspectives with a general discussion and breakout rooms. Registration is required, and providers will be joining the Tuesday series for a 6‑month duration.

For more information and to register, click here.

Register here.

Virtual Grand Rounds: The Nocturnists 

Erica Pan, MD, MPH, from the California Department of Public Health will provide an update on COVID-19 in California, including efforts to keep the virus at bay, progress on vaccinations, and the hope for keeping schools open. We will also hear from The Nocturnists, a medical storytelling live show and podcast in which healthcare workers can pause and examine their inner landscapes. The Nocturnists helps us examine the forces that drive burnout and moral distress, and in doing so, provides hope that we can find ways to flourish in the face of the extreme stresses of medical practice, particularly in the setting of a pandemic. 

Register here.

Register here.

State of Reform, one of the most important statewide events in California health care, pulls together practitioners, thought leaders and policymakers — each working to improve our health care system in their own way — into a unified conversation in a single place. Choose to attend in person or virtually; registration fee varies. CMA members receive a 20% discount on registration with promo code CMA20.

For more information and to register, click here.

Learn more and register here.

Review some of the most critical privacy and security standards in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Rules. In this one-hour webinar with expert HIPAA and practice management consultant David Ginsberg, you will receive important updates on who is covered, what information is protected, how you can stay secure in the Information Age, and how to avoid costly mistakes, as well as learning what is new for compliance. For questions, contact Jenn Mullins, Education and Event Associate, at jmullins@accma.org.

Click here to register.

Thursday, October 21 | 6:15 – 7:30 PM

FREE | CME Available

 

In this webinar, we will start with the core — you — and then expand. You will have time to think about your attitudes, the way you treat yourself and others, how you spend your time, your purpose, and resilience. The speaker is Linda Clever, MD, of RENEW. For questions, contact Jenn Mullins, Education and Event Associate, at jmullins@accma.org.

 

Click here to register.