Why this research is relevant to clinicians today & researchers in the future WASHINGTON, D.C.—The ACR Convergence 2024 meeting in Washington, D.C., reflected the continued advancement of science and practical research in the field of rheumatoid arthritis. Highlights this year centered on new RA treatments and new uses of existing treatments; the use of artificial…
The 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule, released Nov. 1, includes a conversion factor of $32.3465, a 2.83% drop from 2024. In response to advocacy efforts from the ACR and other medical societies, Congress recently introduced the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act of 2024, which would eliminate the 2.83% payment cut and provide an inflationary update for 2025 equal to 50% of the Medicare Economic Index.
An understanding of the mechanisms underlying NET-mediated inflammation will empower clinicians to target therapies that can mitigate disease activity & improve outcomes in patients with lupus.
On Nov. 16, the ACR Convergence 2024 session Toward Personalized Medicine in Pediatric Lupus will present important recent findings in the pathophysiology of pediatric lupus. Virginia Pascual, MD, is program director of an NIAID-funded Autoimmunity Center of Excellence and a NIAMS-funded Center for Lupus Research at Weill Cornell Medical College, New York. Her laboratory is…
Dr. May Ching Soh highlighted practical approaches when caring for pregnant patients with rheumatic disease.
“SLE has long been a disease with many clinical manifestations but few treatment options,” says Physician Editor Bharat Kumar, explaining why he thinks this article is a must-read. “That’s rapidly changing with advances in our knowledge of lupus, especially in the role of B-cells in triggering the onset and perpetuating disease activity of lupus.”
The ACR’s response to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services addresses the likely harm of the proposed conversion factor on the solvency and stability of rheumatology practices. The comments also include recommendations on complex drug administration coding, inflation-adjusted drug rebates and extending telehealth flexibilities.
The ACR will provide comments on several provisions related to Medicare physician payment and the Quality Payment Program.
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, confusion and concern for immunosuppressed patients grew among rheumatologists and patients alike. Research has helped bridge the knowledge gap, and treatment options for COVID-19 have helped ease concerns.
Intermittent fasting—defined as alternating between cycles of eating and going without food over a given period of time—has become popular with individuals seeking to lose weight or balance their lifestyle in recent years. During Ramadan (a period based on the Gregorian calendar that changes from year to year), able-bodied Muslims are obligated to observe a…