Spam, spam, advertisement, spam … wait wait, what’s this? A small envelope, addressed from Maine. I wonder what this is about? Usually, when I get an envelope this size, it’s a letter from someone trying to sell me something or complain about something I have no control over. So imagine my surprise when I found…
A recent meeting of the National Council of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) featured discussions of many topics important to ACR members, including pharmacy benefit manager legislation, biomarker testing and transparency in the healthcare market.
A plain X-ray film appeared on the computer screen—a humerus, a radius and an ulna were all visible. My pupils zoomed around the screen, and on initial inspection, everything looked fine. However, this X-ray was unlike any film I had ever reviewed. You see, it was for my then 4-year-old puppy, Lexi. My sweet little…
Rheumatologists are often called upon to see patients with unexplained symptoms and mysterious illnesses and to manage disease, sometimes with a dearth of evidence. Patients in rheumatology practices also tend to explore treatment modalities outside of the established medical model, sometimes referred to as fringe medicine. Complementary and alternative medicine practices that comprise fringe medicine…
A qualified clinical data registry, RISE helps clinicians measure their performance on quality measures, identify ways to improve their patient care experience, navigate Medicare reporting and demonstrate the value of rheumatology to key influencers. Practices must join no later than June 30 to use RISE for 2023 Traditional MIPS or Advancing Rheumatology Patient Care MVP reporting.
PHILADELPHIA—Acknowledging the complexities of medical care for transgender (trans) and nonbinary or gender-diverse patients and emphasizing the urgency of doing it right, two experts offered guideposts to clinicians in an ACR Convergence 2022 session titled Dignity and Respect: How to Welcome and Care for Gender Diverse Patients in Your Practice, with advice on providing clinical…
PHILADELPHIA—A session on social media in rheumatology at ACR Convergence 2022 focused on how to use social media to promote one’s work and collaborate on international research projects, as well as the use of podcasts in educating rheumatologists. Engaging at Conferences Jean Liew, MD, MS, assistant professor of medicine in the Section of Rheumatology at…
The ACR highlights essential policy and reporting changes to the Quality Payment Program for performance year 2023 and beyond. Key changes include policies regarding the development of new MIPS Value Pathways and refinement of subgroup participation.
Later this month, the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) is expected to extend the public health emergency (PHE) for another 90 days. The PHE extension will allow for the continuation of many flexibilities instituted in 2020, including the expansion of such telehealth provisions as audio-only telehealth.
Dr. Neogi has returned to the ACR Committee on Quality of Care as its new chair after years of dedicated work developing classification criteria, outcome measures and treatment guidelines for rheumatoid arthritis, gout and other rheumatic diseases.