AAPM&R Connection E-Newsletter

We want your feedback regarding the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) HCPCS G-Code to improve payment accuracy for the care of people with mobility-related disabilities.

Input will be gathered during a Virtual Town Hall TODAY at 11 am (CT).

The Academy will then bring input gathered to a meeting with CMS on March 15. Don't miss this important opportunity to make your voice heard! Sign up now.

Every day, physiatrists help their patients define functional outcomes and maximize quality of life. In many cases, function isn’t defined by progress but maintenance; not all conditions are reversible. The human body is imperfect but the human spirit is strong. And thankfully, physiatry is more than…well, you fill in the blank.

If you’ve ever visited the AAPM&R National Office in Rosemont, Illinois, you may have noticed vibrant pieces of art featuring a brain and spine hanging in the reception area. We’d like to introduce Elizabeth Jameson, the artist, to you. Continue reading about her journey with Multiple Sclerosis.

Keep an eye on your mailbox for the latest issue of The Physiatrist. The March issue features:

• Support Brain Injury Awareness Month
• Geriatrics: Interviews with Our Liaisons to Get a Look at Why and How the Academy is Involved
• Affordable Care Act—“Repeal, Reform, Replace, Repair”
• Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee—What We Do
• Update on the Spine Quality Outcomes Database (SQOD): Short-Term Goals Met
  
  

The AAPM&R Leadership Program could be a perfect fit for you! This 2-year program identifies and develops a limited number of early-career physiatrists, and connects them with seasoned Academy leaders and leadership development professionals. We're accepting applications for our 2017-2019 Academy Leadership Program class—learn more and apply by March 31, 2017.

Your Academy is seeking a representative to serve as a delegate to the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates (HOD). AMA delegates play a critical role in the democratic policy-making process that is the foundation of the AMA. Learn more and submit your interest by April 14.

The Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) is a CMS-mandated quality reporting program that gives eligible professionals incentives and negative payment adjustments to promote reporting of quality information.

March 20 is the deadline for reporting your 2016 data using the PQRSwizard^®, an online reporting tool. Take advantage of this resource to help you avoid up to an 8-10% penalty in 2018.

CMS recently funded a program to provide on-the-ground training and education about the Quality Payment Program for clinicians in individual or small group practices of 15 clinicians or fewer. Local, experienced, community-based organizations will provide hands-on training to help thousands of small practices, especially those that practice in historically under-resourced areas including rural areas, health professional shortage areas, and medically underserved areas. Learn more.

• Peter C. Esselman, MD, FAAPMR, professor and chair of PM&R at the University of Washington and AAPM&R Vice President, discusses the recovery of a Mount Vernon police officer who went blind after he was shot in the head while on duty back in December. Read more.

• Michelle S. Gittler, MD, FAAPMR, medical director at Schwab Rehabilitation Hospital, spoke to NBC News in Chicago just days after it was reported that it has been 2 years since Chicago went a day without shootings. Dr. Gittler helps gunshot victims recover from their injuries and explains that this is a public health crisis. Read more. 
  

Do you have a newsworthy story to share with your peers? Send us an email at: pressinquiries@aapmr.org.