The Colorado Medical Society and COPIC last week were featured in the Denver Business Journal cover story on issues in the 2015 General Assembly. The article connects the dots between political engagement and the legislative consequences to maintaining the stability of the current tort system.

The DBJ points to a battle in California that cost opponents $60 million to defeat a ballot initiative that would have raised the caps on medical-malpractice lawsuit damages. The DBJ said it's not likely that the same fight will be repeated in the Colorado Legislature because of COPIC and CMS - the two biggest donor organizations to legislative candidates. Both hold stability of the medical liability system as a top legislative priority for 2015.

The two groups spent a combined $288,520 on winning candidates in 2014 and contributed their donations almost evenly - $145,700 to Democrats and $142,820 to Republicans, the DBJ cited in the article. In addition to strategic contributions, both organizations provide education to incumbents and newly elected legislators after the elections, which contributes to their success: It's been six years since any attempt was made to raise medical malpractice caps and about 10 years since even small changes were made to medical tort law in the state.

Click here to read the full article and more on CMS.org.

The Colorado Medical Society will host the annual spring conference at the luxurious Sonnenalp Hotel in the heart of Vail village May 1-3, bringing together physician activists and national experts in a series of hands-on, eyes- and minds-open interactive sessions on what we are doing, have been doing, and will be doing to hammer at barriers in health care that prevent progress in quality and safety, access, efficiencies, and patient experience.

Registration is free for CMS member physicians and component society staff, and will open in spring 2015. The hotel group rate at the Sonnenalp is $155 per night for a junior suite and $130 per night for a hotel room, and is available now. Reservations can be made by phone through the Sonnenalp reservations department at (800) 654-8312, or online here. When booking over the phone, be sure to mention you are with the Colorado Medical Society to receive the group rate.

Find more information as it is available on CMS's website at www.cms.org/events/spring-conference.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2015, the Colorado Medical Assistance Program (Medicaid) will reimburse covered office visit procedure codes (E&M codes) and the vaccine administration procedure codes for all providers at a rate equal to 100 percent of Medicare's December 2014 reimbursement rate. The new rate will be available to all enrolled providers that submit fee schedule claims for office visits or vaccine administrations. The new reimbursement rate will be in place until June 2016.

Please note that this rate increase is not a continuation of the previous 1202 Primary Care Supplemental quarterly payments. This increase does not require providers to attest to providing primary care and the higher rate is paid for each claim submitted. Please also note that Medicaid will not be changing its reimbursement for E&M codes on a quarterly basis, as Medicare does. E&M codes will be paid at the December 2014 Medicare rate, regardless of whether Medicare raises or lowers its reimbursement of these codes over the coming months.

The reporting system for Professional Review Governing Boards registered with the Division of Professions and Occupations (DPO) opened Jan. 1, 2015. DPO is required by statute to collect data in a non-identifiable and aggregate manner; therefore, reporting can only be submitted online and cannot be mailed. Reporting can be submitted starting on Jan. 1, 2015 and will close on March 1, 2015.

Click here to read more on CMS.org including why physicians have to submit a report, how physicians submit a report, and what information is needed in the report.

During the week of April 26 through May 1, 2015, a second sample group of providers will have the opportunity to participate in ICD-10 end-to-end testing with Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) and the Common Electronic Data Interchange (CEDI) contractor.

Approximately 850 volunteer submitters will be selected to participate in the April end-to-end testing. This nationwide sample will yield meaningful results, since the federal CMS intends to select volunteers representing a broad cross-section of provider, claim, and submitter types, including claims clearinghouses that submit claims for large numbers of providers. Note: Testers who are participating in the January testing are able to test again in April and July without re-applying.

Click here to read more on CMS.org.

If you haven't already taken a look at our wellness toolkit, the Colorado Medical Society, in partnership with the Behavioral Health and Wellness Program at Anschutz Medical Campus, has created a comprehensive resource for physicians to assess and improve their personal and workplace well-being. The toolkit provides detailed step-by-step instructions to help physicians to assess their readiness for health behavior change and to identify goals that further promote and facilitate their career satisfaction. The toolkit includes evidence-based strategies and activities that will improve a physician's overall wellness.

You can access the DIMENSIONS: Work & Well-Being Toolkit for Physicians at www.cms.org/resources/category/physician-wellness or click here.