Juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) is a childhood form of inflammatory myopathy affecting children younger than 18 years. The diagnosis of JDM is based on characteristic clinical features of proximal muscle weakness, skin rash, elevated muscle enzymes, magnetic resonance imaging and muscle biopsy.1 Autoantibodies seen in patients with inflammatory myopathy are not only associated with particular phenotypes…
Presenters at the Access in Rheumatology meeting held in advance of the ACR’s State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium took a deep dive into the access challenges faced by rheumatology patients and discussed possible solutions. Treatment At least until 2026, prescription drug spending will exceed the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and health spending, said rheumatologist Colin C….
Although we can expect to learn much more, preliminary data are now available on the potential safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in rheumatology patients. The picture is likely to be nuanced, with not all types of immunosuppressive treatments having identical impacts on vaccine response. Rheumatologists should use caution in interpreting early reports, while continuing…
Beginning in the late 1800s, Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore, U.S. diplomat and writer, spent 24 years advocating for sakura, or Japanese cherry trees, to be planted in Washington, D.C. After unsuccessfully petitioning every U.S. Army Superintendent of Public Buildings and Grounds for over two decades, she wrote a letter to First Lady Helen Herron Taft about…
One thing that became clear very quickly this past year was that the COVID-19 pandemic would change the way we deliver care to patients. What has not changed amid an evolving healthcare landscape is our driving focus to ensure our patients’ access to rheumatology care and the availability of state-of-the-art treatments. We know you share…
On March 29, Brandon Elliot walked up to a 65-year-old Filipino American woman near Times Square and kicked her in the chest. Footage from the security camera of a nearby luxury apartment building recorded the attack: Elliot shoved her to the ground, and then repeatedly kicked and stomped on her, while shouting, “You don’t belong…
As part of the ACR’s pledge to be a leader for inclusion and change for members, trainees, staff and rheumatology patients, the ACR is holding a special image competition in conjunction with ACR Convergence 2021 dedicated exclusively to images of rheumatic disease in skin of color. “We started discussing the lack of diversity in our…
Some ACR members will be randomly selected to take an important survey to determine relative values for services in new outpatient consultation codes.
The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act (H.R. 3173) will require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to regulate the use of prior authorization by Medicare Advantage plans and establish a process to make real-time decisions for services that are routinely approved. Ask your Congressperson today to support providers and patients and join the more than 100 representatives who are co-sponsoring the bill.
As of April 2021, Medicare requires the use of the JA or JB modifier when billing for drugs that have one Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System Level II (J or Q) code but multiple routes of administration.