The MSD 2022 Virtual Interim Council Meeting will be held on Thursday, April 21, 2022, beginning at 6:00 p.m. All Council members are highly encouraged to register early to ensure receipt of meeting materials to review prior to the meeting. For more information and registration, visit the MSD website. Resolution submission deadline is April 1st.

Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings issued an advisory on Wednesday related to the conflict in Ukraine to exercise vigilance about scams and fraud in connection with charitable efforts to support the people of Ukraine. The advisory provides tips to help prevent fraudulent solicitations made on behalf of charities claiming to aid the victims of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) released a health advisory to make health care providers aware of higher-than-expected rates of Powassan virus in ticks throughout neighboring Pennsylvania counties. There are so far no confirmed cases in Delaware. Powassan (POW) virus disease is a rare but serious arboviral illness transmitted by infected ticks. POW virus is transmitted by the bite of an infected tick during any stage of its life cycle, including the larval stage, which is unlike most of the other tick-borne diseases. Most people infected with POW virus are asymptomatic. Illness, if it develops, appears one week to one month after the tick bite. Symptoms are typical of neuroinvasive arboviral disease and include but are not limited to fever, headache, vomiting, weakness, altered mental status, loss of coordination, speech difficulties, memory loss, encephalitis, and meningitis. Non-neuroinvasive POW virus disease has been documented and manifests as a febrile flu-like illness. Infection can be fatal in about 10% of neuroinvasive cases. There is no specific treatment for POW virus disease and supportive care is appropriate. POW virus disease is a reportable disease in Delaware and suspected cases should be reported to the Division of Public Health Office of Infectious Disease Epidemiology. 

In a report to Congress presented on Tuesday, the Medicare Payment Assessment Commission (MedPAC) indicated Medicare payments to physicians do not need to be increased next year. The report stated, "In light of our payment adequacy analyses, we recommend positive payment updates in 2023 for three FFS payment systems (hospital, long-term care hospital, and outpatient dialysis); no update for three systems (physician, ambulatory surgical center, and hospice); and negative updates for three systems (skilled nursing facility, home health, and inpatient rehabilitation facility). For two of these sectors, we include additional recommendations to improve payment accuracy by requiring ambulatory surgical centers to report cost data and by wage adjusting the hospice aggregate cap and reducing it by 20 percent." The AMA responded with a letter sent to the House and Senate leaders asking Congress to "establish a stable, annual Medicare physician payment update that keeps pace with inflation and practice costs and allows for innovation to ensure Medicare patients continue to have access to physician practice-based care." 

House Bill 334 was introduced on Tuesday this week to the House Health & Human Development Committee. The primary sponsor of the bill is Representative David Bentz. The bill permits health care providers who are licensed in a state other than Delaware to deliver health care services by telehealth and telemedicine only if a health care provider-patient relationship has been established in accordance with § 6003 of Title 24. The bill can be accessed here: https://legis.delaware.gov/BillDetail/79227. MSD has not reviewed the bill nor taken a position as of yet.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech announced on Tuesday the companies have submitted an application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) of an additional booster dose for adults 65 years of age and older who have received an initial booster of any of the authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines. The filing is based on two real-world data sets from Israel analyzed at a time when the Omicron variant was widely circulating, supporting evidence that an additional mRNA booster increases immunogenicity and lowers rates of confirmed infections and severe illness. The FDA's decision could be made quickly if officials conclude the data is straightforward and does not have to be reviewed by a panel of outside vaccine experts.

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) Contact Tracing Team has launched a pre-call SMS/text messaging initiative to individuals who test positive for COVID-19. It involves sending a text message to COVID-positive individuals and providing initial isolation guidance and recommendations through a secure web platform before they receive a call from the Contact Tracing Team. It serves as an early notification system, getting people to isolate more quickly instead of having to wait for a call from a member of the Contact Tracing Team for instructions. A pilot launched March 1st, testing the service on a small number of individuals.

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) announced the following temporary testing site closures beginning the week of March 14 to allow for staffing changes. Some sites may be down for several days so check de.gov/gettested to confirm testing availability at the below sites, or to identify other sites. The following sites will be closed starting:

The Division of Public Health (DPH) has created a one-page document on masking recommendations that can assist people in making the decision as to when to mask. Download the document.

In addition, DPH has made available resources to health care professionals to help educate the public about COVID-19 and collateral for a flu campaign. Materials can be downloaded directed from the site or you can order free copies on items where ordering is available directly from the State's marketing vendor, Aloysius Butler & Clark (AB&C).

Governor John Carney, Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long, and the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) on Tuesday announced almost $17 million in financial support for Delawareans impacted by the COVID-19 emergency, as well as health care professionals at DHSS’ 24/7 facilities.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report indicates that this season's influenza vaccine has not been effective. It is estimated that the vaccine has been 16% effective against mild or moderate influenza caused by the predominant circulating virus, influenza A(H3N2), with a 95% confidence interval that suggests vaccination did not significantly reduce the risk of outpatient medically attended illness caused by H3N2.

The Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH) has formed an Opioid Response Team to provide strategic leadership and oversight to all opioid-related programs and activities throughout the Division, with a focus on the planning for and implementation of the State’s Opioid Response. DSAMH has awarded MSD with a grant to help Delaware reach important goals to provide higher levels of care and decrease opioid overdoses. MSD and its subsidiary, MedNet, will be working closely with an organization called the Recovery Platform to support this initiative. The grant allows MSD/MedNet to recruit up to five practices for a nine-month pilot program. If your practice has a willingness to promote screening tools to patients, treat or refer substance use or social has a willingness to promote screening tools to patients, treat or refer substance use or social needs patients, and desires to make strides in 2022 standards for collection of social determinant data, please complete the survey, which will only be used for our educational purposes and to help identify practices interested and that might benefit from this exciting project! For additional information, contact: Lori Ann Rhoads, CMPE, Director of Health System Innovation, Medical Society of Delaware, LoriAnn.Rhoads@medsocdel.org.

Most descriptions of the nation’s worsening drug-related overdose epidemic highlight the more than 100,000 individuals who have died in the past year. Broad solutions supported by the American Medical Association (AMA) and many others point to the need to remove all barriers to medications to treat opioid use disorder, enforce mental health and substance use disorder parity laws, and greatly increase access to harm reduction efforts such as fentanyl test strips and naloxone. Within the tragic mortality figures, however, are unique effects of the epidemic on children and adolescents, historically marginalized and minoritized individuals, and patients with pain. A new AMA webinar, “The nation’s drug overdose epidemic: Helping children and families, patients with pain,” will look closely at each of these areas from the perspectives of physicians who provide care to these patient populations.  The webinar will take place on Tuesday, April 5 beginning at 2 p.m. ET. AMA login required. Register now. 

The Division of Public Health’s (DPH) Office of Health Crisis Response (OHCR), has initiated a Restaurant Accolade Program to train and educate restaurant industry staff on how to reverse an opioid overdose and support coworkers with substance use disorder (SUD). The creation of the program was informed by the results of Delaware’s first Drug Overdose Mortality Surveillance Report published in August 2019. The report more narrowly guided the state’s efforts to effectively decrease substance abuse and opioid-related mortality and treat SUDs. The report examined data on drug overdoses that occurred in the state in 2017. Analyses in the report found that 10% of Delawareans who died of a drug overdose in 2017 were employed in the food services industry.

Delawareans can find out if their area has internet access and report addresses that do not use Delaware’s Broadband Hub (https://gis.broadband.delaware.gov/). DTI plans to update the interactive map with expansion project updates and real-time data. Addresses reported as lacking service during the construction phase will be included within the current project.

On Tuesday the US Senate approved moving forward to make daylight saving time permanent starting next year. The Sunshine Protection Act would safeguard from having to change the time twice each year. Senators from both parties argued that, by making daylight saving time permanent, there would be beneficial effects on public health, the economy, and cut energy consumption. Opponents assert otherwise. Hawaii, most of Arizona, and the US territories are on permanent standard time, and the bill does not require these locations to switch from standard to daylight saving time. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) argues that standard time (shifts daylight hours earlier in the morning rather than evening hours) most closely matches our natural sleep cycles and that better, more consistent sleep could reduce the rates of strokes and heart attacks, which increase after switching the clocks. The bill still needs approval from the House and the President to become law.

The American Medical Association's Political Action Committee (AMPAC) is the oldest non-union political action committee and leads the way on many political activities like strategic contributions to federal candidates, in-kind contributions, and independent expenditures. AMPAC needs the full support of all physicians. MSD is fortunate to have a direct connection with the AMPAC Board through MSD Past President, Janice Tildon-Burton, MD. Please consider your contribution to AMPAC today. Donations can be made online at: ampaconline.org.

My Green Doctor is a new, free money-saving membership benefit from the Medical Society of Delaware. My Green Doctor is about creating a sustainable environmental sustainability program for your office. One practice is saving more than $1,200 per doctor per year with no financial investment. Your office manager will add just five minutes of “My Green Doctor” to each regular office meeting agenda. Everything is scripted in My Green Doctor’s “Meeting-by-Meeting Guide” so there’s nothing to study in advance. With each meeting, you’ll make small changes that over time mean big improvements in your uses of energy, water, chemicals, paper, foods, and other supplies.

Your staff and patients will benefit from My Green Doctor’s library of educational brochures. This is how we can help prepare our patients for the health effects of climate change. Your entire practice and you can use the MSD discount code MGDMSD when registering as Partner Society members, saving $60 instantly and making My Green Doctor free. Ask your colleagues and manager to register:  https://www.MyGreenDoctor.org/ or https://www.MyGreenDoctor.es/ (en espanol). Easy!

If you are a partner society member and interested in coaching from My Green Doctor volunteers, please contact Todd Sack, MD, FACP, Executive Director of the My Green Doctor Foundation (tsack8@gmail.com or 904/403-6446).

The Wilmington HOPE Commission is sponsoring a community health fair event on Saturday, April 9th from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Free family health services will be provided at their facility located at 38 Vandever Avenue in Wilmington. The free services being offered include wellness demonstrations, vision screenings, dental screenings, and health and wellness screenings. Please share this opportunity with any patients who may benefit from this day of fun and free screening services for the entire family. Download the flyer.

If you are interested in volunteering for one of these sessions, please email Cindy Siu, MD at cwps001@gmail.com with your preferred date and time (12:15pm-12:45pm OR 7pm-7:30pm).

Bayhealth Hospital invites health care professionals to attend their Medical Grand Rounds. This regularly scheduled series takes place every fourth Tuesday from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Bayhealth Medical Center in Dover. You can also join via zoom. Registration is required. Upcoming dates for meetings are April 5, and May 3, 2022. To join the Zoom by meeting number use Access Code 2435 528 4699 and Password Bayhealth.

Join your medical staff colleagues to discuss physician employment and the impact that it is having on the medical staff. Attendees will learn about the opportunities and challenges associated with medical staffs as physician employment increases, and ways to strengthen the medical staff. The webinar will be held on Wednesday, March 23 from 8:00-9:30 p.m. ET. Click here to join the meeting. Audio Only Access: (888) 644-7509 PIN: 116831794#

Mastering Your Financial Plan for Retirement SESSION POSTPONED

The "Mastering Your Financial Plan for Retirement" session scheduled for Thursday, March 24th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at the MSD Conference Center in Newark has been POSTPONED. Please watch for announcements on a new date with presentations by Diamond State Financial Group, Medical Society of Delaware Insurance Services (MSDIS), and Cover & Rossiter CPAs.

Do you wonder how the various existing (e.g., EMTALA) and COVID-19-related (e.g., PREP Act, state-specific immunity) legislation might be applied to care provided during the current pandemic? Are you concerned about current staff and supply shortages and how this might impact medical malpractice litigation? Join Attorney Sandra Cianflone from Hall Booth Smith, P.C. as she discusses ligation trends, the application of crisis standards of care, and the interplay between the myriad rules, and suggests risk mitigation strategies to protect you and your institution from medical malpractice lawsuits during these challenging times. This live complimentary webinar takes place on Wednesday, March 30th from 2-3 p.m. ET. Reserve your spot.

Network with fellow MSD members and learn about what some of the MSD committees are doing for you and the community! Committees highlighted at this event will include: Editorial Board, Environmental Health Subcommittee, and Prison Health Care Subcommittee. Join us Monday, April 25th at 6:00 p.m. Zoom meeting details will be shared 24 hours in advance of the meeting with all registrants. To register, click here.

Night at the Blue Rocks at Frawley Stadium in Wilmington is an exclusive event for MSD early career physician members. The Wilmington Blue Rocks will take on the Bowling Green Hot Rods on Friday, May 6, with game time starting at 6:35 p.m. As a member of the MSD Young Physicians Section, enjoy a night of minor league baseball and fireworks show following the game. Tickets are free for you and one guest, with the option to purchase additional tickets. Physician members of the MSD Young Physicians Section are those who are age 45 or younger or have been in practice fewer than five years after completing training. The 2022 MSD membership renewal must be up-to-date to register. Ticket purchase deadline is Friday, April 22nd.

 To maintain a pulse on the current use of telehealth and physician experiences, the American Medical Association (AMA) fielded the Telehealth Use Survey at the end of 2021. This presentation at 10 a.m. ET on March 31 will walk through survey results and highlight key findings including virtual visit volume, clinical applications, recognized value, benefits, and challenges. We will also cover key areas of opportunity to impact the future of telehealth. https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_7_B44MYDTTyZiY-3ABl3jQ

The AMA’s prerecorded webinar, “Trends in Payor Audits and Disputes,” reviews trends in both Medicare reimbursement audits and commercial payor audits and provides actionable overall strategies for audit response. Presenters also touch on the topics of cross-plan offsetting as it relates to the practice of payor audits, as well as the practice of recovering overpayments. Attendees will learn about strategies for responding to payor audits, understand the impact of audits on a practice, and identify ways to minimize the burden in responding to the audit request. To accompany this presentation, the AMA has developed a checklist that helps practices respond effectively to payor records requests while minimizing the administrative burden associated with responding to such requests. https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-management/private-practices/ama-private-practice-sustainability-getting-started

Dr. Jill Jin talks with podcast guest Laura Ann Hanyok, MD, Assistant Dean for Graduate Medical Education and Associate Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, about how the institution successfully created a 6-pronged approach to address resident and fellow burnout. https://edhub.ama-assn.org/steps-forward/pages/podcast

Bayhealth recently teamed up with Delaware State University (DSU) Athletics and Blood Bank of Delmarva (BBD) to host Ballin’ for Blood—an initiative intended to raise awareness of the importance of giving blood and to help save lives by increasing the blood supply in our local communities, especially during the current blood shortage. The initiative garnered 33 units of blood, including 29 units from whole blood donors and four units from two double red cell donors. According to BBD, a single unit can save up to three lives. 

For the second consecutive year, Forbes magazine has ranked ChristianaCare as one of the best large health systems to work for in the United States. ChristianaCare ranked as the 29^th best health system overall, within Forbes’ list of the 500 best large employers in the United States. ChristianaCare was the only health system in Delaware to make Forbes’ list.

ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Cancer Center & Research Institute announced it is advancing its historic partnership with the Ellen and Ronald Caplan Cancer Center of The Wistar Institute in Philadelphia with three new research projects underway. The new research projects consist of a population health study targeting triple negative breast cancer. Other projects focus on a new therapeutic target for epithelial ovarian cancer, the most lethal gynecologic cancer in the developed world, and the development of “mini organs” derived from stem cells.

MSD's Membership Department is pleased to announce the newest members of the Medical Society of Delaware. Welcome to the third oldest medical society in the country! If you know someone interested in joining MSD, please contact Michelle Seymour at (302) 224-4905 or Michelle.Seymour@medsocdel.org with any questions. You could be eligible for a referral discount!

MSD members are afforded a seven-day review period from the date of this publication to comment regarding applicants for membership. Please contact Michelle Seymour at (302) 224-4905 or Michelle.Seymour@medsocdel.org with any comments.