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Be aware of new elder abuse reporting law
Colorado has a new law that requires certain professionals to report when that professional observes, learns of, or suspects that a person age 70 or older (at-risk elder) or an adult with an intellectual and developmental disability (at-risk adult with IDD) is a victim of physical abuse, sexual abuse, caretaker neglect, or exploitation (mistreatment).
The law requires these professionals to make the report to law enforcement within 24 hours so that law enforcement may conduct a criminal investigation into the allegations. These reports are then shared with Adult Protective Services, which may also investigate the allegations. Failure to report is a class three misdemeanor, which if charged and found guilty could result in a fine of up to $750 or jail time up to six months, or both.
Included in the list of mandatory reporters is:
- Any person providing health care or health-care related services including: general medical, surgical, nursing services, nursing specialty services, dental, vision, pharmacy, chiropractic services, physical, occupation, musical, or other therapies.
- Staff of hospital and long-term care facilities engaged in admission, care, or treatment of patients.
- Staff or consultants of a care facility, agency, home, or governing board (licensed or unlicensed, certified or uncertified) including long-term care facilities, home care agencies, or home health providers.
Information on the mandatory reporting law and an online training are available at ColoradoAPS.com.
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Annual Meeting hotel deadline extended to Wednesday, Aug. 17
The group rate for the host hotel of the 2016 CMS Annual Meeting has been extended to Wednesday, Aug. 17. The meeting will be held Sept. 16-18 at the Keystone Resort in Keystone, Colo. A limited number of hotel rooms at the resort are guaranteed under the CMS group rate starting at $156/night, not including 12.02% tax. Reserve your room through the resort's online reservations webpage, by phone at 1-800-258-0437, or by fax by downloading the lodging form in Word or as a PDF. CMS's group code is CL2M16. Be sure to mention this code to receive the group rate. Rooms may be available after the deadline; call 1-800-258-0437 and give the group code (CL2M16) to book lodging after Aug. 17.
Still need to register for the meeting? Go to CMS's online registration portal.
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Earn Meaningful Use credit through the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey
The National Health Care Surveys, administered by the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, now offers Eligible Providers the opportunity to receive meaningful use (MU) credit by providing data via the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS).
Submitting data through the NAMCS complies with:
Meaningful Use Stage 2
- Objective 10: Public Health Reporting;
- Measure 3: Specialized Registry Reporting;
Meaningful Use Stage 3
- Objective 8: Public Health and Clinical Data Registry Reporting;
- Measure 4: Public Health Registry Reporting.
See the updated National Health Care Surveys Declaration of Readiness here and consider registering for the National Health Care Surveys. EPs can register their intent to submit data by emailing [email protected]. For more information, please visit the National Health Care Surveys page of the CDC Meaningful Use website or send your questions to [email protected]. The National Health Care Surveys include the National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS), National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS), and the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS). These nationally representative surveys provide data and information used by Congress, health care services researchers and others to shape health care policy and the future of health care in the United States.
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Insurance commissioner commits to studying health care costs following legislative study
The Colorado Division of Insurance, in response to a directive from the legislature, recently studied the feasibility of using one geographic rating area (rather than the nine current areas) for setting health insurance premiums for individual and small group markets. Rather than moving to one geographic area, Insurance Commissioner Marguerite Salazar will "focus on ways to control underlying health care costs to address rising insurance premiums," according to a DOI news release.
The DOI announced its intention to immediately assemble key stakeholders -- which will include physicians -- to meet and develop a set of recommendations before the end of the year.
Health insurance companies can differentiate their premiums between geographic areas. The DOI's study showed that geographical areas with high average premiums have had high health costs. "Moving to a single geographic rating area will have no impact on health care costs, and without tackling these costs, there is little hope of bringing down health insurance premiums," the DOI said in the release.
The study can be found on the Division's main website --dora.colorado.gov/insurance -- under the section "More from DOI."
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U.S. Surgeon General: "Turn the Tide" on the opioid epidemic
Every day, more than 75 people in the United States die from a prescription drug or heroin overdose. In 2013, nearly 249 million prescriptions were written for opioids - enough for every adult in America to have a bottle of pills. "We, as clinicians, are uniquely positioned to turn the tide on the opioid epidemic," says U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, MBA.
Last week Murthy launched TurnTheTideRx.org. As the digital home of his Turn The Tide campaign, the site offers clinicians practical tools, information, and in-the-trenches stories from colleagues offering their insights into the epidemic. Murthy urges all clinicians to join the movement and take the clinician pledge at TurnTheTideRx.org/join.
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Ballot box still open: Cast your vote for CMS officers until Aug. 31
Yesterday, Aug. 15, eligible voters should have received a reminder email from Survey & Ballot Systems (SBS) to vote for a slate of Colorado Medical Society officers. The first email was sent on Aug. 1 and came from [email protected]. Be sure to add this email address to your safe senders list (instructions here). Or check your junk/spam folder or email [email protected] if you did not receive it. This is our first all-member election and all ballots will be cast electronically. Thank you to all those who have already voted. We hope all members will use this opportunity to cast your vote and affirm the significant repurposing of our organization that aims to engage all members. We also ask you to consider seeking an officer position in the next round of the nomination process. More details on the nomination period will be available in September. Thank you for your participation in our medical society.
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Healthy Transitions Colorado Symposium, Aug. 22-23 in Denver
A lot is happening in the world of payment reform. If you work in health care, your inbox is inevitably filled with tweets, newsletters and "Breaking News!" about VBPs, MIPS, MACRA, CJR, BCPI and a whole alphabet soup of others.
To address the onslaught of information and to really bring into focus what is happening right here in Colorado, Healthy Transitions Colorado is dedicating its August Symposium to payment reform.
Registration closes tomorrow, Wednesday, Aug. 17. Click here to view the draft agenda.
Community Partners receive discounted registration fees! Your organization can sign up to be a community partner today.
For questions, please contact Miranda Meadow at [email protected].
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COPIC Insurance Company is Colorado's leading medical liability insurance provider. Three out of four physicians choose COPIC for this critically important coverage. CMS members receive a 10 percent premium discount from COPIC.
For more information, call (720) 858-6000 or visit www.callcopic.com.
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Carr Healthcare Realty exclusively represents healthcare tenants and buyers. We assist medical practices in all types of lease and purchase negotiations: New Offices, Expansions, Relocations, Practice Acquisitions, and Lease Renewals. Visit: www.carrhr.com
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GreenLight is the national leader in web-enabled behavioral health testing with over half a million assessments in 35 states. GreenLight is designed to help physicians enhance patient care, improve population health and add incremental revenue to the practice. Visit www.Greenlight.md or call 866-602-1778.
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Colorado Springs Commercial provides tenant representative services to healthcare professionals. We analyze leases for: new office space; renewals; and, expansions. Visit: coscommercial.com/services/tenant-services
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The average physician can save $38,000 by refinancing their student loans with LendKey! CMS members get a $400 cash bonus when refinancing through this partnership.
Rates as low as 2.14% variable and 3.25% fixed. Visit www.LKrefi.com/co-med. Phone: 888-549-9050 Email: [email protected]
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You are unique.
More than 50% of physicians feel they have more complicated financial needs than other professions. Our firm works with physicians and their families to tackle these unique challenges. Call (720)-887-1299 or visit www.goldmedalwaters.com.
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A world class 12-step program that's 12 steps away from a world-class medical center. 1-877-999-0538 or cedarcolorado.org
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Compliments of CMS: Reduce patient callbacks, HIPAA compliant, RX Savings up to 75%, click for free customization COLORADO DRUG CARD.
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