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An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

Do Fatty Acids Underlie Rheumatoid Arthritis Pathology?

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According to a new study, patients with aggressive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have lower levels of non-esterified fatty acids, which coincide with an enhanced Th1 response. Researchers suggest that lower EPA and DHA at the onset of RA may exacerbate inflammation, and fatty acids may become a novel therapeutic target for the disease…

Roche Gets Boost from FDA in Bid to Expand Uses for Actemra

Reuters Staff  |  

ZURICH (Reuters)—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted breakthrough status to Roche’s rheumatoid arthritis medication Actemra (tocilizumab) for giant cell arteritis, the Swiss drugmaker said, a step which could help it broaden applications for the medicine. Giant cell arteritis is a chronic, potentially life-threatening autoimmune condition caused by inflammation of large and medium-sized arteries,…

ICD-10 2.0: An Evolving Data Set

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One year after the official go-live of the International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10), the coding language is scheduled to undergo an evolution, with nearly 1,975 additions, more than 300 deletions and 425 revisions. This brings the total set of diagnosis codes to more than 71,480. The new and revised clinical modification codes (ICD-10-CM)…

UHC Expands Pilot Lab Benefit Management Program

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UnitedHealthcare recently announced plans to expand its pilot Lab Benefit Management Program to Texas, as of March 1, 2017. The pilot program, which is administered by BeaconLBS, was first launched in Florida in October 2014. Under the pilot, providers are required to use a tool called Physician Decision Support to order certain labs for UHC…

Bipartisan RheumPAC Serves Needs of Patients and Rheumatologists

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For more than a decade, the ACR’s Government Affairs Committee (GAC) has given rheumatologists a voice in the halls of Congress. Since 2007, that voice has been amplified by RheumPAC, the bipartisan political action committee for ACR/ARHP members that helps advance the policy goals of the College, rheumatology professionals and their patients. “RheumPAC allows us…

New Kits Address Pediatric-to-Adult-Care Transition

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The transition from pediatric to adult care can be a rocky one. For many rheumatology patients, any problems in the move can cause gaps in care. To address this issue, the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) joined the American College of Physicians’ (ACP) Pediatric to Adult Care Transitions Initiative. The Initiative is a project spearheaded…

Advocates on the Hill

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On Sept. 12–13, nearly 100 rheumatologists, health professionals and patients participated in the Advocates for Arthritis event on Capitol Hill to advocate on behalf of those living with and treating rheumatic diseases. Key Requests & Congressional Support Attendees visited 116 members of Congress and their staff members to: Advocate for changes to the Centers for…

How to Document E/M Services

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Documenting evaluation and management (E/M) services involves many factors, and it’s important to code to the most appropriate level of service to avoid compliance risks. To assist providers with documentation, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) provides its 1995 and 1997 Documentation Guidelines for Evaluation and Management Services. For billing purposes, either version…