Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians Newsletter
February 3, 2017

Upcoming Events
Capitol Day
February 22, 2017
State Capitol Building 
Jackson, MS

Spring Fling & Spring Conference
April 21-23, 2017
Jackson Marriott
Jackson, MS

Annual Meeting
July 15-19, 2017
Baytowne Conference Center
Destin, FL

Board Meetings 

April 21
MAFP Office
Ridgeland

July 15 & 19
Destin, FL

December 8-9
Indianola, MS

New Members
Joanna D iane Bayles, DO
Hancock Medical Family Medicine
Diamondhead, MS

J. William Erwin, MD
Gulfport, MS

James Robert Hubbard, MD, FAAFP
Oxford, MS

Benita J. Myles, MD
East Central Mississippi Health Care, Inc.
Sebastopol, MS

Jennifer Leigh Thompson-Davis, MD
Iuka, MS

Ara Bryant Travers, MD
Moss Point, MS

UMMC Student Members

Joseph Alexander Halinski
Minh Pham
Kristen Majure Wilson

WCUCOM Student Members

Maryann Y. Alvarez
 

GETU1 and promote healthy living in the state of Mississippi by purchasing a Live Healthy specialty license tag for the small fee of $31.
 
Request this tag at your county tax collector's office when you renew your license tag. Proceeds from the sale of this tag benefit the Mississippi Academy of  Family Physicians Foundation.
 
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Medical Students and Residents
Don't Miss This Opportunity!
   
The Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians Foundation is sponsoring the fifth annual Future in Family Medicine Spring Fling specifically for medical students and residents on April 21 and 22. The Spring Fling is designed to bring medical students and residents together for networking, education and advancing the specialty of primary care. 

The conference will open with the MAFP Crawfish Boil at The Lake House on the Reservoir on Friday evening, April 21 and will continue on Saturday, April 22 with speakers, topics, and procedures that students and residents might not normally have access to during medical school or residency training.

Spring Fling will be held in conjunction with the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians Spring Conference and the  Rural Opportunities for Mississippi Physicians Career Fair (ROMP).  Students and Residents will have the opportunity to network with ROMP exhibitors to learn more about resources and opportunities to practice medicine in rural or small town Mississippi. ROMP is sponsored by nine health care organizations interested in helping match rural Mississippi communities with primary care physicians.

Students and Residents: 

Physicians:

$1,000 Scholarships for 
Students and Residents  

The   Family Medicine Leads Emerging Leader Institute  is held at the AAFP National Headquarters in Leawood, Kansas, on Saturday and Sunday directly following the  AAFP National Conference of Family Medicine Residents and Medical Students . In 2017, scholars selected for the program will participate from July 26, 2017, to July 30, 2018, or longer, depending on whether scholars receive project awards. 

This year-long leadership development program focuses on ensuring the future of the Family Medicine specialty by increasing the number of future Family Medicine leaders and providing training for this important role.

Each selected participant receives a $1,000 scholarship to attend both the AAFP National Conference and the Family Medicine Leads Emerging Leader Institute. Scholarship funds are to be used for hotel and other travel costs associated with participation.   Read more.


Nominations Sought For
 2017  MAFP Awards

Do you know someone who would be a great nominee for a 2017 award? Nominations are open for the following awards:
 
The awards criteria, eligibility, and nomination guidelines and processes are available on the MAFP Website.
 
The deadline for nominations is Monday, May 15.  For more information contact Claire Rome at  [email protected] or 601-853-3302.
Inside the Capitol

The 2017 legislative session convened on Tuesday, January 3 at noon. This is the second year of the four-year term and is set to last 90 days. Sine Die is currently scheduled for Sunday, April 2.
 
Much of January was spent with legislators authoring bills, and committees working through nearly 2,400 general bills and constitutional amendments that needed to pass out of committees by January 31. 532 bills cleared the committee deadline hurdle and move to the floor of both the Senate and the House for vetting by the full membership.
 
The Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians legislative committee works diligently to review healthcare bills and determine a position on each item. MAFP was able to again stop a push to weaken Mississippi's vaccination laws and several bills that would have allowed for independent practices for nurse practitioners.
 
SB 2567, the "Mississippi Health Agency Reorganization Act of 2017," is currently on the Senate Calendar. The bill transfers oversite authority of all healthcare regulations currently held by the Mississippi State Board of Health to the Office of Governor. Your legislative committee sent this letter to each Senator and will continue to convey our position of opposition to this bill.
 
Over the next two months, both chambers will consider the bills that are still alive and work on the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Early in 2017, Governor Phil Bryant made emergency mid-year budget cuts of approximately 51 million dollars. As the session moves forward, members will receive a report on the state of the economy in Mississippi and have a better understanding of the state's revenue forecast. Agency needs, budget cuts, and financial outlooks will play a role in the setting of the 2017-2018 fiscal year's budget.
 
We encourage all members to make plans to attend the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians Capitol Day on Wednesday, February 22. 
 

PQRS & ICD-10: The Impact of AAFP Advocacy

On January 9, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced   that it "will not apply the 2017 or 2018 downward payment adjustments, as applicable, to any individual eligible professional or group practice that fails to satisfactorily report for calendar year (CY) 2016 solely as a result of the impact of ICD-10 code updates on quality data reported for the fourth quarter of CY 2016."

CMS is encouraging physicians to refer to the  ICD-10 Code Updates message on the Physicians Quality Reporting System (PQRS) Spotlight webpage   or the   PQRS ICD-10 Section Page  
for additional information.

AAFP News has an excellent summary about how this may impact your practice. The AAFP also has extensive resources on PQRS available for its members.
 
MAFP Capitol Day 2017
Wednesday, Feb. 22

Get on Track with Family Medicine
Wear Your White Coat
 
As one of the five goals of the MAFP strategic plan, advocacy is essential when defining the standards of Family Medicine. On February 22, the MAFP will provide our members the opportunity to serve as a unified voice at the MS Capitol.
You are welcome to join us for a portion of the day or t he entire day. We need as many white coats and MAFP pins at the State Capitol as possible in order to Get Mississippians on Track with Family Medicine.

Breakfast & Screenings
7 am - 12 noon
First Floor Rotunda, State Capitol
Join us for breakfast, meet our MS Rural Scholars, see the work of our Foundation and the Office of MS Physician Workforce, and visit with l egislators as they have their cholesterol, glucose, blood pressure and BMI checked.

MAFP Membership Lunch
12 noon
Hear briefings on federal and state issues.  

Shelby Mae King, MPA
AAFP Legislative and Policy Strategist

Ashley B. Thompson
MAFP Legislative Consultant

Dessert & Coffee
2 - 4 pm
Join us for dessert and coffee while we promote Family Medicine to our Senators and Representatives.

If you can attend, email  [email protected] with your name, city and cell number, or call the MAFP office at 601-853-3302.

Save the date and make plans to attend the 2017 MAFP Annual Scientific Assembly
 
 National Conference of Constituency Leaders (NCCL) 
 
NCCL is a vehicle for member constituencies, recognized as women, minorities, new physicians, international medical graduates, and LGBT physicians, to exchange information, share experiences, and develop basic leadership skills.  If you are interested in becoming a chapter delegate, simply email your CV and area of interest to Claire Rome at [email protected].  

Chapter delegates are official representatives from each constituency representing each chapter. All active members who meet the definition of the constituency group they will represent are eligible to serve as a chapter delegate. Chapter delegates are eligible to serve on and testify in all reference committees, vote on resolutions in the business session, and vote in the elections.

If you are interested in being more involved in the MAFP and AAFP, being a delegate to the NCCL is the perfect opportunity for you.  

For more information on NCCL,  click here.
 
Become a Fellow of AAFP

NEW THIS YEAR:   Members elected to Fellow status are granted the privilege of using the initials "FAAFP" after their name and are honored during a special Convocation Ceremony.  The Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians will hold a Convocation Ceremony at the 2017 Spring Conference April 21-23 at the Jackson Marriott and at the  Annual Scientific Assembly July 15-19, at Baytowne Conference Center, Sandestin, FL.

If you are interested in participating in the MAFP Convocation Ceremony at Spring Conference or Annual Meeting, please contact Claire Rome at  [email protected] .

The Degree of Fellow recognizes AAFP members who have distinguished themselves among their colleagues, as well as in their communities, by their service to family medicine, by their advancement of health care to the American people, and by their professional development through medical education and research.  Fellows of the AAFP are recognized as champions of family medicine.  They are the physicians who make family medicine the premier specialty in service to their community and profession.  From a personal perspective, being a Fellow signifies not only "tenure" but one's additional work in your community, within organized medicine, within teaching, and a great commitment to continuing professional development and/or research.