On Oct. 1, physician practices and hospitals made the switch to ICD-10. Though many may be wondering how the transition is going, it will take at least a few weeks (a full billing cycle) before the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has a full picture because of the way claims are submitted and processed.

The federal CMS has promised to monitor the transition in real time, watch their systems and address any issues that are emailed to the ICD-10 Coordination Center, a group of Medicare, Medicaid, billing, coding and information technology systems experts from across the agency.

If you do have problems with ICD-10, the agency recommends you:

• Contact Novitas Solutions, Colorado's Medicare Administrative Contractor,
• Contact the ICD-10 Coordination Center at [email protected],
• Or contact the ICD-10 Ombudsman, Bill Rogers, MD, at [email protected].

Please also let the Colorado Medical Society know of any issues you experience by emailing [email protected].

Starting Oct. 5 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services opened the 30-day preview period for the 2014 quality measures that will be reported on Physician Compare later this year. Access the secured measures preview site now through the PQRS portal-Provider Quality Information Portal (PQIP). To learn more about which measures will be publicly reported and how to preview your measures, visit the Physician Compare Initiative webpage.

If you have any questions about Physician Compare, public reporting, or the 2014 quality measure preview period, please contact the Physician Compare Support Team at [email protected].

Specialists will soon have access to practice transformation resources thanks to a federal grant awarded to Colorado in late September. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced that 39 national and regional health care networks and supporting organizations will be given awards to help equip more than 140,000 clinicians with the tools and support needed to improve quality of care, increase patients' access to information, and reduce costs.

The Transforming Clinical Practice Initiative (TCPI) is one of the largest federal investments designed to support doctors and other clinicians in all 50 states through collaborative and peer-based learning networks. Colorado's proposal is expected to target 800 primary care physicians and 1,200 specialists, providing practice transformation tools with attention to cost and quality and moving to value-based compensation. Watch for more information as it is available.

The Department of Health Care Policy and Financing announced on Oct. 8 that Colorado Medicaid will now cover a nasal mist atomizer device that can be used to administer an opioid overdose antidote. While the drug Naloxone is not new, it has historically been administered through an injection, and is now available as a nasal mist. The department hopes that Medicaid's coverage of the device will help reduce the number of deaths from opioid-related overdoses by enabling a family member or friend to administer Naloxone.

"This benefit supports the governor's initiative to reduce opioid overdose deaths in Colorado," said Susan E. Birch, MBA, BSN, RN, HCPF executive director, in a release. "We are hoping to save lives and encourage other health plans to follow this lead."

Read HCPF's full press release here.

Physicians with volunteer faculty appointments at the University of Colorado School of Medicine who are willing to teach medical students can claim CME credit for a variety of learning/teaching interactions. "Learning from Teaching" was developed to award AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for learning activities related to teaching medical students and residents. The credit recognizes the learning that occurs as physicians prepare to teach, but the credit is based on the time spent using what they learned in preparation to teach. This is a great opportunity for volunteer faculty to earn CME credit while precepting medical students.

Read more about this opportunity on CMS.org.

The SIM Practice RFA opened on Sept. 15, 2015; practices may begin submitting applications to be included in the first cohort of the State Innovation Model (SIM). The application closes on Oct. 26. Selected practices will be notified on Dec. 25 and the first cohort kicks off on Feb. 1, 2016. View the RFA and apply at www.ucdenver.edu/practicetransformation.

Only one SIM webinar remains to inform practices how they can benefit from participating in SIM. The last webinar will be held on Oct. 22, 12:15 - 1:15 p.m; sign up here. For more information on SIM email [email protected] or call (303) 724-8968.

Just a few weeks ago, the CMS House of Delegates voted overwhelmingly to dissolve themselves into a realigned model that connects a streamlined board to the widest possible spectrum of its physician constituencies.

This move will give members an unprecedented voice in the society, empower you to choose your representation, directly connect you to a more empowered and diverse board of directors, open up new leadership training opportunities, and more. 

Read highlights of the new governance structure on CMS.org.