If you thought the presidential election was a tough choice, imagine selecting this year’s slate of ACR/ARHP award winners. At the 2016 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in Washington this November, the ACR and the ARHP honored a group of distinguished individuals who have made significant contributions to rheumatology research, education and patient care. In this issue,…
The State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook was founded in 1957, and is currently known as Stony Brook University. In the 1970s, when the Health Sciences Center was still in the cocoon stages of its metamorphosis, the School of Medicine, under the brilliant stewardship of Marvin Kuschner, MD, was already on a mission…
Which came first? The infectious microorganism or a host’s immune resistance against it? Through the millennia, a raging battle has pitted the hordes of infectious agents surrounding us against, arguably, the most complex biologic structure ever created, the finely tuned human immune system. The stakes are high for both sides. For the infectious agent, an…
Rheumatology nurses have a new option to obtain certification. Instead of taking an exam to demonstrate one’s competencies, rheumatology nurses can provide documentation of their expertise through an online application process, the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Rheumatology Nursing Certification Through Portfolio. Launched in February 2016, the program was developed by the ANCC in collaboration…
This has been a year of tremendous growth, change and achievement for the ACR, and I have been fortunate to lead the ACR in these endeavors. The ACR and ARHP, including the ACR Executive Committee, the ACR Board of Directors, standing and special committee chairs and hundreds of dedicated volunteers, have contributed to this growth…
Classification criteria for primary Sjögren’s syndrome (SS) have been approved by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR), validating an international set of classification criteria for SS using standards set by both organizations. Those criteria can now be found in the 2016 ACR/EULAR Classification Criteria for Primary Sjögren’s Syndrome: A…
Advancing the understanding of autoimmune diseases has implications for precision medicine, according to Robert Carter, MD, of the NIH. Research funded through the NIH’s Accelerating Medicines Partnership has the potential to develop better biomarkers and clinical trials for lupus and RA, paving the way for more personalized treatment…
(Reuters)—U.S. health insurer Anthem Inc on Wednesday raised the prospect of smaller participation in the individual Obamacare exchanges in 2018, saying it would have a market-by-market strategy that hinges on 2017 profitability. The company said that losses due to sicker-than-expected customers in its individual Obamacare plans were a bit less than foreseen in the third…
Rheumatologists and rheumatology health professionals interested in knowing more about the major legislative and regulatory issues that may have an impact on their practice will want to attend the Legislative and Regulatory Update 2016 session at the upcoming ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. On Tuesday, Nov. 15, from 7:30–8:30 a.m. in Room 140A, Will Harvey, MD, MSc,…
“Doctors must be politically active or they will surrender the control of healthcare to others,” says Tim Hutchinson, former U.S. Senator from Arkansas (Republican), emphasizing the need for rheumatologists to become involved in advocacy given the particularly challenging environment caused by partisan polarization and gridlock in Washington—which is expected to continue regardless of the upcoming…