Greetings, Advocates! In my last update, I described the great news from February’s budget agreement that fixed Medicare’s payment adjustments so MIPS penalties would not include Part B drug costs, ensuring stabilization of the Medicare Part B drug system, among other successes. (Read the ACR’s press release on this topic.) I also described the Trump administration’s…
Think Globally; Act Locally: A Conversation with Luke Barré, MD, MPH
The ACR’s ability to address the big picture of rheumatologic care while focusing on individual practice and patient needs is one of the many things that attracted Luke Barré, MD, MPH, to the College early in his career. With training in both preventive medicine and rheumatology, Dr. Barré believes combined global and local views are…
ACR’s Affiliate Society Council Reports Solid Gains in Advocacy Efforts
It’s May, and soon, most state legislatures will be adjourning for the remainder of the year. Joseph Cantrell, JD, senior manager of state affairs for the ACR, who tracks the progress of state and federal patient care legislation, reports that several states saw solid gains during 2018 state sessions, which typically run from January to…
Joint Efforts: RheumPAC Facilitates Progress
Advocacy and RheumPAC staff from the ACR and other medical specialty organizations gathered in Nashville this month to discuss the importance of making sure your members know the details of the work advocacy and the PAC are doing. Thus far, the ACR has had a very successful year in terms of its advocacy efforts. Following…
Research Shows High Adherence to Performance Measures for RA Cohort
New research examines the adherence rates for system-level performance measures in Canada. Using data from the Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort that spanned eight years, researchers determined the percentage of RA patients seen in yearly follow-up with the number of gaps between visits, the percentage of RA patients treated with a disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug and number days from diagnosis to the initiation of treatment. The results: High adherence to system-level performance measures was found in this early RA cohort, with small declines in performance with the increasing length overtime…
FDA Updates Ixekizumab Label to Include Genital Area Psoriasis
Ixekizumab is the first agent approved by the FDA for treating plaque psoriasis to include labeling for psoriasis in the genital area…
Is Chemical Exposure Linked to DNA Methylation Dysregulation in SLE Patients?
Could your lupus patients benefit from limiting exposure to chemicals at home and in the medical environment? It’s a strong possibility, according to the preliminary findings of a research team investigating DNA methylation disruption in patients with SLE…
Insight into the Downregulation of NK Cells in SLE Patients
New research suggests the downregulation of CD3ζ contributes to the altered function of NK cells in SLE patients, which may contribute to the increased risk of viral infections in these patients…
Spine Surgery May not Be Needed to Ease Back Pain from Osteoporosis
(Reuters Health)—Patients with acute pain from osteoporosis damage to the spine don’t experience any more relief from surgery to inject cement into cracked or broken vertebrae than they would with a sham procedure, a recent trial in The Netherlands suggests. All of the patients in the experiment had compression fractures, which can happen when osteoporosis…
UnitedHealthcare Implementing Risk Adjustment Audit Program
Beginning in June 2018, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) will implement their risk adjustment data validation (RADV) audit program. UHC states that through the mandatory requirement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Medicare Advantage health plans will be reviewed for supporting medical documentation to check for accurately reported patient data. UHC will send requests…
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