California
Oncology
Weekly
"Where California Oncologists Go For Answers!"
A collaborative publication of the
Medical Oncology Association of Southern California, Inc.
and the
Association of Northern California Oncologists, Inc
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June is National Cancer Survivors Month
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- COA files lawsuit to stop HHS & OMB from applying sequester cut to Part B drugs.(National News)
- Submit abstractfor ASCO's Quality Care Symposium (Affiliate Association News)
- Genomic Health's TAILORx trial presented at ASCO (Industry News)
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California News
- The California Department of Managed Health Care 2017 Annual Report DMHC 2017 Annual Report and Infographic 2017 Infographic are now available online. Both of these documents highlight the DMHC's activities during 2017 and include key statistics about the Department. The DMHC protects the health care rights of approximately 26 million Californians and ensures a stable health care delivery system. The Department has helped more than 2 million Californians resolve health plan problems through the Help Center. Information and assistance is available at www.HealthHelp.ca.gov or by calling 1-888-466-2219.
- Labor Law Postings in California have changed. There were updates to Mandatory labor law posting requirements that affect your business. In order for your business to stay in compliance with these recent changes, the updated posting(s) must be downloaded, printed, and then posted next to your current labor law poster.
The California Department of Fair Employment has made a change to the Transgender Rights in the Workplace notice. The notice has been updated to reflect a clarification regarding the use of workplace restrooms, locker rooms and similar facilities. The updated posting clarifies and employer's obligation to provide an easily accessible unisex single-stall restroom for use by any employee desiring increased privacy. The poster revision date is 5/29/18.
Download
HERE.
- The Federal "Right-To-Try" law provides broader legal protections for drug companies than does California's law. The federal law also limits the the Food and Drug Administration's access to data collected through patients who seek the experimental drugs. California's "Right-to-Try" law is supposed to give terminally ill patients access to drugs that haven't been fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Since it was enacted in 2017 drug companies have been reluctant to participate. A new federal law signed by President Donald Trump last week, could solve that problem, but opponents say it will undermine the FDA's crucial drug-vetting process.
- Riverside Superior Court judge, last week, rebuffed an effort to restore California's End of Life Options Act, which gives dying patients the right to end life on their own terms. So the state must try again. The next motion, urging the judge to cancel a ruling invalidating the law, is set for June 29.
- CAPP/MICRA Supporters, you are invited for an evening reception on Tuesday, June 19th from 5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. to mix and mingle with California Republican Caucus members, including Senate Republican Leader Patricia Bates and Assembly Republican Leader Brian Dahle. The reception will be held at the California Dental Association's 15th Floor Rotunda (1201 K Street, Sacramento). Please click here to view the invitation. Please share the invitation with your staff and colleagues and encourage them to attend. Please RSVP to Tina de Vere White tdeverewhite@micra.org. Thank you for your continued support of CAPP.
- Mandatory use of California's CURES system begins in October 2018. Download the Medical Board of California's flyer explaining this mandate at
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- ASP Medicare Part B Drug Pricing Files and Revisions to Prior Quarterly Pricing Files - July 2018 Quarterly Update CR10667
Change Request (CR) 10667 instructs MACs to download and implement the July 2018 and, if released, the revised April 2018, January 2018, October 2017, and July 2017 ASP drug pricing files for Medicare Part B drugs via the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Data Center (CDC). Read the complete update
- Open Public Meeting Announcement - June 7, 2018
Noridian will be hosting a Medicare Part A and B Open Public Meeting Thursday, June 7, 2018 from 11 a.m. - noon PT. Read the complete update
- Upcoming Noridian/JEMAC webinars include:
*QMB Program Billing Requirements CMS Training Call - Wednesday, June 6, from 10:30am - 12 pm Pacific Time. Visit the QMB Program webpage for more information. Register for CMS' Medicare Learning Network event.
*
Medical Review Findings of Care Plan Overview (CPO) Webinar - June 19
at 1 p.m. Pacific Time. Read the complete update.
* Modifier 59, NCCI and MUE Webinar-June 21
* Part B, Home Health & Hospice Collaborative Webinar, June 27
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- THIS Saturday, June 9th at the Cedars-Sinai Advanced Health Sciences Pavilion, L.A., MOASC member, Andrew Hendifar, MD, Cedars-Sinai, Course Director, invites you to attend the upcoming, NANETS Regional NET Education: The Multidisciplinary Management of NET Cancers. This conference, a joint effort of NANETS, North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society, and Cedars-Sinai is taking place. This session will focus on NET diseases and patient care. Participants will learn about standard management of patients with neuroendocrine tumors, as well as new diagnostic and therapeutic techniques. Consider joining my co-course directors, Nicholas Nissen, MD, Farin Amersi, MD and me along with an esteemed faculty for -
- Overview of Neuroendocrine Tumors (NETs): Symptoms and Epidemiology
- Cutting edge diagnostic and therapeutic techniques to identify and treat NET patients
- Surgical, Hormonal and Medical Management of NETs
- Peptide Radioreceptor Therapy (PRRT)
- Hereditary Syndromes: MEN1, MEN2, VHL, Pheochromocytoma and Paraganglioma
- Case Presentations and Multidisciplinary Tumor Board
This program offers 6.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits for Physicians.
- MOASC and ANCO are jointly conducting a 2018 staff salary survey. The survey will be USPS mailed, e-mailed/FAXed to all MOASC members in mid-May and is available online at www.anco-online.org/salary.html. A $50 Visa gift card for respondents is included in this year's survey. Return your completed survey no later than September 30; results will be analyzed and reported in 4Q2018.
  
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- Congratulations to ANCO Member, Primo N. Lara, Jr., M.D., who has been named the Director of the University of California, Davis, Comprehensive Cancer Center.
- Congratulations to ANCO Member, Douglas W. Blayney, M.D., FASCO. ASCO will recognize Dr. Blayney with the Joseph V. Simone Award and Lecture for Excellence in Quality and Safety in the Care of Patients with Cancer at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting.
- ANCO and MOASC are jointly conducting a 2018 staff salary survey. The survey will be USPS mailed, e-mailed/FAXed to all ANCO members in mid-May and is available online at www.anco-online.org/salsrvy.html. A $50 Visa gift card for respondents is included in this year's survey. Return your completed survey no later than September 30; results will be analyzed and reported in 4Q2018.
- ANCO is organizing a series of Hematologic Malignancies Updates in 2018. The first Update takes place on June 16 at the Sacramento Hyatt Regency with Gabriel Mannis, M.D.,
University of California, San Francisco,
Joseph Tuscano, M.D., University of California, Davis, Jeffrey Wolf, M.D., University of California, San Francisco, and Naseem Esteghamat, M.D., University of California, Davis. The latest research on novel treatment modalities for hematologic malignancies--leukemias, lymphomas and myeloma--along with case studies for these diagnoses will be presented. These updates are supported by AMGEN, Janssen Oncology, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Novartis Oncology, and Seattle Genetics. Download the meeting announcement and registration form at http://www.anco-online.org/2Q2018HemeMaligUpdate.pdf
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- The Community Oncology Alliance (COA) has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to stop the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from applying the Medicare sequester cut to reimbursement for Part B drugs. In the lawsuit, COA, which represents more than 5,000 independent, community-based oncologists, shows the sequester cut has harmed patients, decimated the nation's independent community cancer care system, and cost seniors and taxpayers billions in unnecessary health care spending. To view the article click HERE.
- HHS will postpone a rule to set new ceiling prices for the 340B drug discount program, despite objections from hospitals that fear drugmakers will overcharge them without that protection. The agency said the postponement will allow it to develop a new rulemaking
- The International Myeloma Foundation
presents
Living Well with Myeloma Teleconference Series, The Importance of Bone Health and Treatment Updates: What Patients & Caregivers Need to Know,
Wednesday, June 20, 2018.
Faculty:
Noopur S. Raje, MD,
Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, and
Beth Faiman
,
PhD, RN, MSN, APRN-BC, AOCN, Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
4pm Pacific/5pm Mountain/6pm Central/7pm Eastern
Duration: 60 Minutes (includes Q&A).
Click here to Save the date and Register!
-The 2018 National Oncology Benchmark Study is the largest, most comprehensive collection of oncology-specific practice and hospital data available for both infusion services and radiation oncology. It offers practices and hospitals unprecedented access to relevant comparative data to help guide your operations planning, your financial performance, and your strategic decision making processes. The information contained in this study can provide you with the relevant data you need to pursue important strategic services and/or find opportunities to enhance your financial performance as compared to your peers.
Registration for the 2018 National Oncology Benchmark Study (NOBS) is now open to all infusion and radiation oncology centers. There is no fee. Whether you are a hospital, freestanding center or an oncology practice (medonc or radonc) you can be a vital participant in this valuable study! Participation guarantees you a complimentary copy of the Final Report.
For more information on the 2018 National Oncology Benchmark Study (NOBS) please click here:
www.NOBStudy.com
- The 60th ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition in San Diego, California will be December 1 - 4, 2018. Registration and housing will open soon. In previous years, fraudulent registration and housing websites have posed as ASH's official housing provider, causing attendees to lose deposits and end up without housing or registration for the meeting. Please note that SPARGO, Inc. is the only official housing provider for the 60th ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition.Do not be misled by "pirate" housing companies or travel agencies that may solicit you over the phone or via email and misrepresent themselves as ASH's official housing or registration provider.Registration or Housing Questions?ASH Registration and Housing Center Phone: 888-273-5704 (U.S. toll free)
- It's National Safety Month! Health and safety risks associated with nurses' shift work, long work hours, and related workplace fatigue, can be learned in the CDC's complete two-part training. Learn personal behaviors and workplace strategies to help reduce these risks. Although this training is designed for nurses and their managers, other health professionals may find it beneficial. Earn free CE. LEARN MORE.
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CMS News
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CMS is hosting a webinar to provide information about the Promoting Interoperability performance category
(formerly the Advancing Care Information performance category) of the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS).
During the webinar, CMS will:
Provide a brief overview of MIPS requirements in 2018,
Discuss the renaming of Advancing Care Information to Promoting Interoperability,
Explain the Promoting Interoperability performance category requirements for 2018; and
Discuss scoring for the Promoting Interoperability performance category.
The registration information is provided below.
Title: Promoting Interoperability Performance Category Webinar
Date: Tuesday, June 12
Time: 1:00 - 2:00 PM ET
Please note, after the webinar,
CMS will post
the slide deck, recording and transcript when available
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MBI - Get It, Use It SE18006
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is mailing the new Medicare cards with the MBI in phases by geographic location. Read the complete update
- Your 2016 performance scores are now available for download via Data.Medicare.gov. The Physician Compare Downloadable Database is a resource intended for clinicians and group representatives as well as third-party data users to provide useful information about clinicians and groups currently enrolled in Medicare.
- Provider groups only have two months to determine if they want to participate in the CMS' voluntary Bundled Payment for Care Improvement Advanced program, but they still don't have the claims data they need to make that decision.
Read More
- The federal government's payments for brand-name drugs in Medicare Part D soared by more than $40 billion despite declining use of the medications. Read More
- By FRIDAY, June 29, submit your ideas to CMS! CMS is accepting proposed measures for inclusion in the Medicare Promoting Interoperability program, formerly known as meaningful use.
Stakeholders may that focus on the improvement of health data exchange and interoperability, advanced use of 2015 edition certified EHR technology, patient safety, outcomes measurement, and streamlined program effectiveness, efficiency and flexibility. EHR Intelligence.
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Affiliate Association News
- Submit an abstract by June 12 at 8:59 PM (PDT), for the ASCO Quality Care Symposium,September 28-29, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Symposium is the ideal venue to present your research to colleagues in the field interested in improving the implementation of quality and safety in cancer care. Through a multidisciplinary program of panel discussions, lectures and abstract presentations, the Symposium promotes innovation, collaboration, and cooperation to improve quality in oncology care.
- Help steer the meeting discussion by providing input today, for the
ASH Summit on Emerging Immunotherapies for Hematologic Diseases, July 12 & 13, 2018. The Summit will feature interactive breakout sessions aimed at addressing important topics relevant to the design and application of immunotherapies. These small-group sessions will create a unique opportunity for attendees to steer the conversation and help chart the course for the field. Please complete a short pre-meeting surveyto help facilitate scientific discourse during the breakout sessions.
- ASCO invites you and your members to participate in the 2018 ASCO Practice Census. Just as you monitor the health of your patients, ASCO regularly gathers information on the oncology practice environment, and we need your help to do so! This annual survey of the entire U.S. oncology practice community aims to capture key information on what is happening in oncology practice today and is chronicled as part of ASCO's State of Cancer Care in America initiative. With a new streamlined approach, this year's census covers two key topics: opioids and Pharmacy Benefit Managers, two of the four State Affiliate Council's priorities. Please complete the survey.
- NCCN has published updates to:
The NCCN Guidelines® for Breast Cancer Version 1.2018.
NEW NCCN Template for Kidney Cancer Version 4.2018.
The NCCN Evidence Blocks™ for
Colon Cancer v2.2018 and Rectal Cancer v1.2018
The NCCN Compendium® for Uterine Neoplasms. Version 2.2018.
For the complete updated versions please visit NCCN.org.
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Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
informs
MOASC
and
ANCO of
the results from RealGiDo, a retrospective, observational real-world study of Gilotrif® (afatinib) tablets. For more information click HERE.
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MOASC CALENDAR
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SAVE THE DATE
ANCO's ASCO Highlights
(Oakland, August 25)
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The
Medical Oncology Association of Southern California
(MOASC) is a leading oncology society that advances and protects the ability of cancer patients to obtain, and the ability of the oncology physicians to provide, optimal cancer care. The
Association of Northern California Oncologists
(ANCO) is an association of hematologists/oncologists dedicated to promoting high professional standards of cancer care by providing a forum for the exchange of ideas, data, and knowledge.
The material contained in the
California Oncology Weekly
is intended as general information for ANCO and MOASC members. Because diagnostic, treatment, contracting, coding, and billing decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis, any such information contained in the
California Oncology Weekly
may not apply in any given situation. Members are encouraged to contact their own consultants or advisors to obtain specific advice on matters relating to contracting, coding, and billing. The information contained in
California Oncology Weekly
should not be used as a substitute for such advice.
This publication provides a summary of regulations affecting oncology and its business practices. Reading this newsletter does not substitute for understanding regulations and verifying the validity of every claim. This information is time-sensitive and is subject to change. MOASC or ANCO accepts no liability for any statements or articles herein.
CPT codes are owned and trademarked by the American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
MOASC: P.O. Box 161, Upland, CA 91785 | P (909) 985-9061 | F (909) 804-5006| www.moasc.org
ANCO: P.O. Box 151109, San Rafael, CA 94915 | P (415) 472-3960 | F (415) 472-3961 | www.anco-online.org
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