Academy News
Message from AAPM&R Regarding Board-Mandated MOC Requirements
On May 8, the AAPM&R Board of Governors (BOG) distributed a message to all members regarding the current Maintenance of Certification® (MOC®) process. In this message, your Academy expresses support of the principles of certification rooted in a commitment to medical professionalism and self-regulation. The BOG notes that some components of the current MOC process place significant burdens on physicians without having been shown to achieve the desired objectives.
Your Academy calls upon the American Board of PM&R (ABPMR) to suspend the current MOC part IV process, as well as, to reconsider the format of part III to help cover the common core aspects of PM&R while reflecting individual practice patterns. View the full message here.
(Please note that while your Academy is encouraging ABPMR to make meaningful changes to MOC, ABPMR is an independent organization, separate from the Academy. Any changes in future MOC requirements must be determined by ABPMR and would be communicated at that time. Your Academy continues to encourage certification of members and the meeting of ongoing certification requirements.)
Registration for AAPM&R’s 2015 Annual Assembly is Now Open!
Registration for the 2015 Annual Assembly, held October 1-4 in Boston is officially open! This year’s meeting – “The Physiatry Experience: Success in a Changing Health Care Environment” – will empower physiatrists to become more effective, visionary leaders to help transform your practices for success.
Take a look at some of this year’s highlights:
Be sure to secure a spot in limited attendance events and workshops. Register early to have the best selection.
Check out the Assembly’s website for meeting details and registration!
National Pain Strategy: Open for Public Comment – Deadline May 20
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has released its National Pain Strategy for public comment. HHS is accepting public comments through May 20, 2015. HHS invites input from a broad range of individuals and organizations that have interests in advancing the fundamental understanding of pain and improving pain-related treatment strategies.
If you have an interest in pain as part of your profession or as part of an effort to reduce pain for your patients, family, friends, constituents, or anyone else, please consider contributing a comment during the public comment period by using the links below. Your comments may help improve the strategy, and the more comments submitted, the greater the interest and priority that policymakers can justify in addressing pain.
Don’t Miss the Best in Ultrasound Education
Your Academy is committed to providing you with the resources to fully integrate ultrasound technology into your practice with our 2015 ultrasound course –Diagnostic and Interventional Musculoskeletal Ultrasound of the Upper Extremity, June 26-28 in Tampa, FL. Held at the Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation (CAMLS), you don’t want to miss this one-of-a-kind learning experience featuring top-rated faculty. Check out the course agenda and register today!
Nepal Relief Opportunities
The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25, 2015 has left immense devastation throughout the nation’s capital city and beyond. Visit the Academy’s website to learn about donation and volunteer opportunities.
Participate in Final ICD-10 Acknowledgement Testing Week: June 1-5
To help you prepare for the transition to ICD-10, CMS offers acknowledgement testing for current direct submitters (providers and clearinghouses) to test with the Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) and the Durable Medical Equipment (DME) MAC Common Electronic Data Interchange (CEDI) contractors. These acknowledgement testing weeks give submitters access to real-time help desk support and allow CMS to analyze testing data. Mark your calendar for the final acknowledgement testing week, June 1-5, 2015.
For more information on how to participate, visit your MAC website or through your clearinghouse (if you use a clearinghouse to submit claims to Medicare). Any provider who submits claims electronically can participate in acknowledgement testing.
Regenerative Medicine Supplement and SAE-P – Now Available!
Members have ranked regenerative medicine as a critical educational topic. That’s why AAPM&R is excited to announce the new regenerative medicine Self-Assessment Examination for Practitioners (SAE-P), Physiatric Applications of Stem Cell Therapies in Regenerative Treatments of Musculoskeletal Conditions.
This SAE-P offers up to 8AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ and helps fulfill part II of your American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) requirement. Academy members receive30% offthis resource in the mē®catalog – check it out today!
Send the AMA and AAPM&R Your Electronic Health Record (EHR) or Meaningful Use Experience
Meaningful Use is a Medicare and Medicaid program that awards incentives for using certified electronic health records (EHRs) to improve patient care. The American Medical Association (AMA) is seeking your stories and experiences with the Meaningful Use program so that they may share them with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to foster improvements in Meaningful Use. If you would like to share issues you’ve experienced with the program, please download this complaint form.
Once your form is completed, send it to both medicareproblems@ama-assn.org and memberservices@aapmr.org.
Proposed FY 2016 Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Payment and Policy Changes
On April 23, CMS issued a proposed rule (CMS-1624-P) outlining proposed CY 2016 Medicare payment policies and rates for the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) and the IRF Quality Reporting Program (QRP).
The proposed rule also includes:
- An update to the IRF PPS payments for FY 2016 to reflect an estimated 1.9% increase factor
- No changes to the facility-level adjustments
- ICD-10-CM conversion for the IRF
- Changes to the wage index
Your Academy is currently reviewing the proposed rule for changes that impact the practice of physiatry and will submit comments on June 22.
Get Ready for the ABPMR Sports Medicine Subspecialty Exam
If you’re registered to take the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR) sports medicine subspecialty examination, July 8-11, 2015, AAPM&R offers the following resources on mē® to help you prepare:
Check out these and more sports medicine-related content in the me®catalog and PM&R Knowledge NOW®. Plus, AAPM&R members automatically save up to 33% off these resources!
Four Facts about ICD-10
These 4 facts address some of the common questions and concerns CMS has heard about ICD-10:
- The ICD-10 transition date is October 1, 2015. There has been no delay given, get ready for ICD-10.
- You don’t have to use 68,000 codes. Your practice does not use all 13,000 diagnosis codes available in ICD-9, nor will it be required to use the 68,000 codes that ICD-10 offers.
- You will use a similar process to look up ICD-10 codes that you use with ICD-9. Your Academy has created the ICD-10 Crosswalk Sheet in selected practice areas to help you with code selection.
- Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) outpatient and office procedure codes aren’t changing. The transition to ICD-10 for diagnosis coding and inpatient procedure coding does not affect your practice’s use of CPT codes. Your Academy has created the 2015 Coding Companion to help you continue to navigate the continued use of CPT codes for outpatient and office coding. Pre-order the Coding Companion today in the mē®catalog – members receive $100 off the list price!
Your Academy has several resources to help members navigate ICD-10 implementation. Please visit theICD-10 Resourcespage for the latest news and resources to help you prepare.
Foundation for PM&R Extends Research Grants Application Deadline
Due to a clerical error, conflicting application deadline dates were posted for the Aspen Medical Product Spinal Bracing Research Grant and the Mallinckrodt Acute Pain Management Research Grant. The Foundation for PM&R is extending the deadline to June 1, 2015 for anyone interested in applying for research grant money in either of these areas. Visit the Foundation's websitefor more information and the application forms.
June 1 Deadline for American Rehabilitation Champion Nominations
The Foundation for PM&R is once again offering the American Rehabilitation Champion Award, given annually to 1 individual who has overcome the effects of disability through their own courage, determination, hard work, and with the help of a physiatrist. Visit the Foundation’s websitefor award details and a nomination form.
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