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California Oncology Weekly
"Where California Oncologists Go For Answers!"
A collaborative publication of the
Medical Oncology Association of Southern California, Inc.
and the
Association of Northern California Oncologists, Inc.
July 26, 2016
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California News
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- California Attorney General joined a federal Justice Department antitrust lawsuit to block the proposed health insurance mega-merger between Anthem and Cigna, a consolidation that would create the country's largest health insurer. - MOASC is pleased to sponsor the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease briefing taking place in Sacramento on August 2. 5% of people currently account for 50% of health care spending in California. The fight for health in California could save 106,900 lives annually with better treatment and prevention. For more information go to http://bit.ly/29zbB24. - MOASC and ANCO have written a letter to California state senator Ed Hernandez, to OPPOSE SB 1010 as we believe it will put patients' access to medicine at risk. Specifically, the requirement to provide a 30-day notice of a price increase on an existing drug will lead to stockpiling or hoarding of needed treatments for patients. Plans would be required to report on the percentage of the premium attributable to prescription drugs administered in a doctor's office that are covered under the medical benefit as separate from the pharmacy benefit. It is unclear what value there is in singling out medication provided in physicians' offices. There are concerns that it would create an opportunity for plans to create utilization management techniques targeting that type of care. This provision could impose a chilling effect on the oncologist's ability to ensure access to needed care in the most appropriate, least costly, community-centered setting for cancer patients. Finally, SB 1010 raises a significant number of implementation questions which the state, manufacturers, and all stakeholders would need to resolve before the requirements can be fulfilled.
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Noridian News
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*Monthly Revalidation due dates continue. July 31, 2016 is the next due date. Providers missing the May 31, 2016 revalidation will soon be deactivated, while those missing the June 30, 2016 due date will be placed into a Pend Status. Read the complete update
Claims, Pricers, and Codes--
Events--PQRS Feedback Reports and Informal Review Process for Program year 2015 Results Call-August 10
Publications--Medicare Billing Certificate Program for Part A and Part B Providers WBT-Revised; Complying with Medicare Signature Requirements Fact Sheet-Revised; Medicare Enrollment Guidelines for Ordering/Referring Providers Fact Sheet-Reminder
* Prompt Payment Interest Rate- July 2016
* Stem Cell Transplantation for Multiple Myeloma, Myelofibrosis, and Sickle Cell Disease, and Myelodysplastic Syndromes-Revised CR9620
* Chemotherapy Administration-R2-Revised
* Flow Cytometry LCD-R4
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- TOMORROW, don't miss MOASC's LunchTime Series Teleconferenceon "340B: An Overview, What's at stake?" Presented by: Mike Ybarra, M.D., Senior Director of Alliance Development, PhRMA, Wednesday, July 27, 2016, 12:00pm-PST. Please RSVP to [email protected] or by calling 909-985-9061 ext. 1
- You are cordially invited to the MOASC Cocktail Networking Reception. Stop by and network with colleagues and discuss the new and exciting clinical developments discussed during the 2016 Best of ASCO� San Diego Meeting, Friday, August 12, 2016, 4:30PM - 6:30PM, Hilton San Diego Bayfront (Sapphire 411 Room), 1 Park Blvd, San Diego, CA.
Please RSVP to the MOASC Office [email protected] or call 909-985-9061, ext. 1 no later than Monday, August 8th. MOASC's Networking Reception is not an official event of the 2016 Best of ASCO San Diego Meeting. It is not sponsored or endorsed by ASCO or the Conquer Cancer Foundation, nor is it CME-accredited.
- Renew your MOASC membership today! There are two ways you can join:
To pay by check:
Make check payable to:
Medical Oncology Association of Southern California
Mail to:
P.O. Box 161, Upland, CA 91785
To pay by credit card:
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the MOASC Office at [email protected] or 909-985-9061 ext. 1.
- MOASC and ANCO have partnered with SullivanLuallin Group to offer your practice the opportunity to participate in an Oncology-based Patient Satisfaction Survey. The Survey is designed to assess your organization's performance in key areas associated with the ACO, PQRS and CAPHS Surveys. SullivanLuallin Group's eSurv: Online Patient Satisfaction Survey platform allows you to efficiently and cost-effectively capture how your patients feel about your systems, services, and performance. Download more information and an enrollment form at www.anco-online.org/PtSurvey2016.pdf.
- In 2016, MOASC has joined ANCO in conducting a 2016 Staff Salary Survey. The purpose of the staff salary survey is to update data relevant to practice expenses in California. This year's survey questionnaire and past survey results can be found at www.anco-online.org/salsrvy.html. The survey was adopted from The Health Care Group and updated by studying other salary surveys. Please complete the survey and return it to the MOASC office at your earliest convenience but no later than September 30, 2016. Respondents will be provided with a $50 Visa gift card. Please contact MOASC if you have any questions at [email protected]
JOB BOARD:
- Busy Oncology office in Orange, CA has immediate opening for F/T Oncology Chemo certified RN. Must have excellent IV skills; Exceptional communication and organizational skills are a must. We offer competitive salary and great benefits. Email resume to Administrator at [email protected]
- Board certified medical oncologist with over 26 years of clinical experience including industry and network trial, is relocating to California. I f your practice has an opportunity for a highly experienced and nationally respected hematologist-oncologist, please contact the MOASC office [email protected] for more information.
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- ANCO is pleased to announce that it will host ASCO Highlights 2016 on August 27 at The Claremont Resort in Oakland. The meeting will summarize the major research and treatment advancements presented at this year's
ASCO Annual Meeting. The program will focus on breast, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, gynecologic, and lung cancers as well as hematological malignancies. The meeting was announced in late June; download the meeting announcement and registration form at www.anco-online.org/ASCOHL2016.pdf.
- ANCO is pleased to announce that it will host it 2016 Professional Education Meeting on August 3 at The Claremont Resort in Oakland. The meeting will feature sessions on MACRA, Managing Oncology within Medicare, California's End of Life Option Act, and An ANCO Atlas. The meeting was announced in early June; download the meeting announcement and registration form at www.anco-online.org/ProfEduc2016.pdf.
- ANCO and MOASC have partnered with SullivanLuallin
Group to offer your practice the opportunity to participate in an Oncology-based Patient Satisfaction Survey. The Survey is designed to assess your organization's performance in key areas associated with the ACO and PQRS CAPHS Surveys. SullivanLuallin Group's eSurv: Online Patient Satisfaction Survey platform allows you to efficiently and cost-effectively capture how your patients feel about your systems, services, and performance. Download more information and an enrollment form at www.anco-online.org/PtSurvey2016.pdf.
- ANCO and MOASC have partnered to conduct a 2016 Staff Salary Survey. The purpose of the Staff Salary Survey is to update data relevant to practice expenses in California. Past ANCO Staff Salary Survey results are reported at www.anco-online.org/salsrvy.html. The 2016 Staff Salary Survey was distributed to members the week of May 16 and is available online at www.anco-online.org/SalarySurvey2016.pdf.
Completed Surveys are due no later than September 30 and respondents will be provided with a $50 Visa gift card. Results will be analyzed and reported during 4Q2016.
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- Just seven states achieved a passing grade for making usable healthcare price information available to consumers. A new study finds that the other 43 states failed at price transparency because they didn't collect claims data from all payers or they failed to make the data accessible to the public through a website, according to the 2016 Report Card on State Price Transparency Laws (PDF). The report is the fourth installment by the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute and Catalyst for Payment Reform, two independent health policy organizations. The report is meant to be a state-by-state resource that shows policymakers, health providers and consumers how states are progressing at price transparency. Obtaining a passing grade boiled down to the state's collecting claims data from all payers and then making the database easily accessible on a state website. 12 states that are collecting the necessary data failed this year's price transparency survey because they aren't sharing it with the public.
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- CMS' Open Payments Program will host a "Special Open Door Forum" on August 2, 2016, at 10:30 am PST, to receive live feedback from stakeholders on the solicitation to inform future rulemaking in the proposed 2017 Physician Fee Schedule. CMS is soliciting feedback from Open Payments stakeholders on expanding and clarifying Open Payments program requirements and is not currently under no statutory deadlines or implementation schedules that require CMS to make any changes to the current rule. However, CMS does believe stakeholder feedback is important as they continue to move forward in enhancing their system and refining their reporting requirements. To aid stakeholders, CMS has already provided quite a lengthy list of topics on which it would like to receive comments, a summary of the proposed schedule and requested input can be found here. CMS also published a slide show of questions they will be discussing, which can be found here. - Ahead of the release of its much-anticipated star ratings for overall hospital quality, CMS published data showing how those star ratings are distributed according to hospital characteristics, such as size and status. The agency said it planned to post overall hospital star ratings "shortly" on its Hospital Compare website. CMS Previews How Hospitals Will Fare On New Star Ratings
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Affiliate Association News
2016 Best of ASCO� San Diego: Register Today Plan to attend the Best of ASCO� San Diego Meeting August 12-13 at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront. The Meeting will highlight the most cutting-edge science and education from the world's premier oncology event, the ASCO Annual Meeting. With the field of cancer care constantly evolving and expanding, the Best of ASCO� San Diego Meeting will bring together expert faculty to discuss the impact of new and exciting research and clinical developments. Register and reserve your hotel today! - The first 25 ANCO and MOASC members to register will have their registration fees waved using the code L16ANCO or L16MOASC, respectively. Join PER� at this year's 17th Annual International Lung Cancer Congress� at the Hyatt Regency in Huntington Beach on Thursday, August 4th through Saturday, August 6th 2016. Leading international and national faculty, such as David Gandara, MD, will address critical topics in lung cancer staging, personalized therapy, and the latest clinical data impacting the treatment of lung cancer. The International Lung Cancer Congress� provides current, practical information on the management of lung cancer, as well as a look at the novel agents and strategies that will shape the future of lung cancer therapy. Don't miss this unique learning opportunity. Visit our site here to register! For more information and for assistance in registering, please call (609) 378-3701 or email [email protected] - To help you prepare for MACRA implementation, ASCO will be offering a series of webinars and an in-person workshop. Click the Registration link for the July 19 webinar. As an alternative, you may also visit the ASCO in Action page on www.ASCO.org to find the registration link. Please scroll down to the last paragraph and click on the "Registration" hyperlink. As registration opens for future webinars and the workshop, notifications will be included in our weekly newsletter. Additionally, you can find video and PowerPoint slides from previous webinars, as well as, additional information on the MACRA Resource page. - Applications for ASCO's Leadership Development Program are now open and must be received by September 23. To learn more about the Program, please visit www.asco.org/leadership. - COA has launched a peer-to-peer support network for practices participating in the CMS Oncology Care Model (OCM). The COA OCM support network was created at the request of OCM practices, and nearly 200 individuals from more than 112 cancer care teams have already joined. It is free of charge for all OCM practices to join, completely noncommercial, and practices to no have to be members of COA to participate. The COA OCM support network is focused on helping practices succeed. It is enabling ongoing, private, peer-to-peer knowledge sharing to ease the challenges practices face; hosting monthly calls for participants; developing free tools and resources to help practices deal with IT and other implementation issues; and, working as a unified voice for practices engaged in this effort. If you are interested in joining the support network, e-mail [email protected]. - At the MGMA 2016 Annual Conference, Oct. 30 - Nov. 2 in San Francisco, you'll find the best practices, proven strategies and lasting support you need to grow professionally; see and capitalize on opportunities; and, ultimately, lead your practice to even greater success. Click here for the full schedule and session details. - NCCN has published updates to the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines�) and the NCCN Drugs & Biologics Compendium (NCCN Compendium�) for: esophageal and esophagogastric cancer (V2.2016), gastric cancer (V2.2016), melanoma (V3.2016), thyroid carcinoma (V1.2016). Please visit NCCN.org - The College of American Pathologists (CAP), the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), and the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) have announced an open comment period for the revised evidence-based Molecular Guideline for Selection of Lung Cancer Patients for EGFR and ALK Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors. Learn more at http://amp.org/committees/clinical_practice/AMPclinicalpracticeguidelines/LBGOCP.cfm. The guideline is designed to provide state-of-the-art molecular testing of lung cancer recommendations. The comment period ends August 2.
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MOASC CALENDAR
LunchTime Series Teleconference/Webinar
July 27th
August 31st October 26th Oncology Roundtable Teleconference September 28th November 30th
ASCO State Affiliate
Meeting in Virginia, VA
October 26th - 28th
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Hematological Malignancies Updates
(September 17; Sacramento)
Hematological Malignancies Updates (November 12; Palo Alto)
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The Medical Oncology Association of Southern California(MOASC) is a leading oncology society that advances and protects the ability of cancer patients to obtain, and the ability of the oncology physicians to provide, optimal cancer care. The Association of Northern California Oncologists (ANCO) is an association of hematologists/oncologists dedicated to promoting high professional standards of cancer care by providing a forum for the exchange of ideas, data, and knowledge. The material contained in the California Oncology Weekly is intended as general information for ANCO and MOASC members. Because diagnostic, treatment, contracting, coding, and billing decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis, any such information contained in the California Oncology Weekly may not apply in any given situation. Members are encouraged to contact their own consultants or advisors to obtain specific advice on matters relating to contracting, coding, and billing. The information contained in California Oncology Weekly should not be used as a substitute for such advice. This publication provides a summary of regulations affecting oncology and its business practices. Reading this newsletter does not substitute for understanding regulations and verifying the validity of every claim. This information is time-sensitive and is subject to change. MOASC or ANCO accepts no liability for any statements or articles herein.CPT codes are owned and trademarked by the American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
MOASC: P.O. Box 161, Upland, CA 91785 | P (909) 985-9061 | F (909) 804-5006| www.moasc.org
ANCO: P.O. Box 151109, San Rafael, CA 94915 | P (415) 472-3960 | F (415) 472-3961 | www.anco-online.org |
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