Repeal the SGR Formula in 2014: Take Action NOW!

At the beginning of the year, Congress came close to passing bipartisan legislation that would have fixed the SGR crisis. Ultimately, they passed another patch. Encourage lawmakers to continue working in a bipartisan manner and remind them to repeal the SGR formula and design a new Medicare physician payment system. Send an e-mail to your lawmakers or call the AMA's grassroots hotline at (800) 833-6354.

Exclusive New Medical Professional Liability Insurance Program for Physician Groups

MSNJ is pleased to announce that one of its platinum sponsors, Arthur J. Gallagher, has negotiated a program that will give qualifying physician groups that are insured on a claims-made policy, extended reporting ("tail") coverage AT NO ADDITIONAL COST.

At last, a program now exists that allows physicians to switch to an occurrence-type policy and eliminate the worry associated with expensive tail coverage - AT NO ADDITIONAL COST.

Are you Communicating in Your Patients Preferred Way?

POS® Messaging is much more than your traditional automated communication system. With POS Messaging your practice can send automated patient messages via email, phone, text and mail to increase practice revenue, simplify internal processes and improve patient care.

Try it for FREE!

For a limited time, try POS Messaging for FREE!

Click here to watch a short demo video.

MSNJ and New Jersey Dental Association (NJDA) proudly announce a joint effort to offer discounts to all of our members on prescription blanks. Visit our website for participating vendors and pricing. 

MSNJ has made arrangements with an on-line resource (Education in Palliative and End-of-life Care) to satisfy the 2 credit end-of-life training requirement via long distance learning - and at a 15% discount to members. MSNJ members, please click here to obtain the promo code.

The following modules are thought to meet the requirements. Each module is designated for 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ (cost to MSNJ members about $25.50 per credit)

• Gaps and Elements of Care
• Legal Issues
• Whole Patient Assessment
• Physician Assisted Suicide
• Last Hours of Living
• Withholding/Withdrawing Treatment
• Medical Futility

Choose two that meet your needs! See related News story. 

The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office will host free training and education on how to administer naloxone to reverse a heroin/opioid overdose. 

All participants will receive a free naloxone kit and a treatment voucher for 30 days of free substance abuse treatment to use or distribute to any person that needs medication-assisted treatment.

• Lacey United Methodist Church - Tuesday, October 7 at 6:00pm

Join Cumberland County Medical Society for NJ PURE's

"KNOWLEDGE IS POWER" Dinner Presentation "Partnering with your Patients to Reduce Malpractice Risk"

Tuesday, October 7, 2014 from 6:00pm-9:00pm

This activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

More information.

Northeastern Basic Course for Principles of Infection Prevention and Control

October 6-10, 2014 at the New Jersey Hospital Association, Princeton, NJ

Register for a Free CME event!

Oncology Cancer Care Symposium

Jersey Shore U. Medical Center

October 21, 2014 8am to 12pm

Join MSNJ, in conjunction with the Burlington County Medical Society and the Monmouth-Ocean County Medical Society for A Free Advocacy & Financial Planning Seminar for Physicians.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014 from 6:00pm - 9:00pm at Sheraton Eatontown, Eatontown, NJ

This event is FREE to physician members and non-members. Dinner and cocktails will be served. More information and registration.

The Delaware Stroke Initiative and the Delaware Medical Society will host "The John Scholz Stroke Education Conference" on Saturday, November 8, 2014 from 7:00am to 1:45pm at the Ammon Medical Education Center on the campus of Christiana Care Health Services in Newark, Delaware.

Learn:

• The continuum of care for stroke rehabilitation patients;
• The effects of stroke on vision;
• New treatment options for stroke prevention and brain hemorrhage;
• Stroke risk factors, including hypertension and atrial fibrillation;
• The psychological impact of stroke on caregivers;
• The radiographic evaluation of stroke;
• The risk factors, symptoms and management of pediatric stroke;
• How orthotics are used for movement and stability in stroke recovery; and
• The common principles of primary prevention of stroke. 

NY and NJ 2014 Symposium on Opioids and End of Life Care

November 9, 2014 from 8:00am to 4:00pm at Hyatt Regency on the Hudson, Jersey City, NJ

NJ Chapter, American College of Surgeons 63rd Annual Clinical Symposium

Saturday, December 6, 2014 from 7:30am to 5:30pm at the Renaissance Woodbridge Hotel & Conference Center

Clinical Sessions include:  

Bariatric Surgery; Cardio-Thoracic Surgery; Colon & Rectal Surgery; Neurosurgery; Trauma Surgery; Plastic Surgery; Otolaryngology; Urologic Surgery; Vascular Surgery; Trauma Surgery; Global Surgery.

Special Sessions include:  

End of Life Care - POLST; 2014 ACS Update; Sheen Award Lecture; Resident Jeopardy/Resident Manuscript Awards

Registration coming soon.

Renew your dues ONLINE by October 15, 2014 and receive a 5% discount on your state dues!

MSNJ, HRET and HFMA will host a seminar "Show Me the Money: Capturing the Benefits and Avoiding the Risks of Healthcare Reform" on October 30, 2014 at New Jersey Hospital Association. View the brochure and register online.

First Ebola Case Diagnosed in the U.S

The CDC has confirmed that the first case of Ebola was diagnosed in the United States. The patient developed symptoms about four days after arriving in the U.S. on September 20 after traveling from Liberia to Dallas, Texas. On September 24, the patient fell ill and sought medical care at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas on September 26. He developed symptoms consistent with Ebola and was admitted to the hospital on September 28. Based on the patients' travel history and symptoms the CDC suggested testing for Ebola. The medical facility isolated the patient and sent specimens for testing to the CDC and to a Texas lab participating in the CDC's Laboratory Response Network. The CDC and the Texas Health Department reported the laboratory test results to the medical center and informed the patient. A CDC team is being dispatched to Dallas to assist with the investigation. Read more. View updates on CDC's website.  

Ebola Resources    

MSNJ's AMA Delegation Will Seek Study of Medicare's Straddle Drug Pricing

CMS Releases First Round of Open Payments Data

On September 30, CMS released the first round of Open Payments data to help consumers understand the financial relationships between the health care industry and physicians and teaching hospitals. The data contained 4.4 million payments (valued at nearly $3.5 billion) attributed to 546,000 individual physicians and almost 1,360 teaching hospitals. Future reports will be published annually and will include a full 12 months of payment data, beginning in June 2015. Over time, CMS expects to make enhancements, such as introducing new tools to allow for easier data searches. This functionality will allow users to more easily review payments received by their physicians and create search criteria such as specialty, location, or types of payments received.

Read CMS' press release on the Open Payments data release. View AMA's talking points and article. To view the Open Payments physician payment dataset visit the Open Payments website. Read MSNJ's comments in an NJBIZ article. 

Drug Abuse

MSNJ member, Dr. Shore, and prominent NJ addiction expert, Dr. Baxter, participated in a panel entitled "Stigma as a Roadblock to Recovery" at The Many Faces of Addiction: Ending the Stigma event this week. Governor Christie hosted the event to discuss drug addiction issues and reduce stigma for this disease. See press coverage here.

MSNJ participated in the fifth Do No Harm CME event attended by nearly 200 physicians. MSNJ is a sponsor of the event series, along with the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey, the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and others. The CME series is a part of MSNJ's focus on drug addiction prevention and reduction.  See the flier here.

Read more at www.msnj.org/drugabuse. 

NJ Supreme Court Protects Hospital's Self-Critical Analysis from Discovery

The New Jersey Supreme Court recently ruled in C.A. v Bentolila that a document created by Valley Hospital personnel during its self-critical analysis of an adverse event was shielded from discovery in a subsequent medical malpractice lawsuit. At issue was whether the hospital had complied with the requirements of the Patient Safety Act, passed in 2004, which would provide an absolute privilege for such documents. The case involved a birth injury alleged to have been caused by negligent medical care. 

Regulations implementing the act and expanding upon some of its requirements were not adopted until 2008. The document at issue was created after the law was passed, but before the regulations were adopted. In a four/three decision the majority decided that the hospital had substantially complied with the act's requirements because it had followed requirements contained in the statute. The majority held that the hospital should not be expected to anticipate requirements in future rulemaking. Read more. 

Statute of Limitations on False Claims Act Under Review

This winter the United States Supreme Court will decide whether physicians who provide services under Medicare and other federal programs may be sued under the False Claims Act indefinitely. At issue is whether such claims are time-barred by the existing six year statute of limitations. In a "friends of the court" brief, the AMA argues that failing to enforce the existing statute of limitations could result not only in indefinite exposure, but also repeated exposure to lawsuits. Penalties under the False Claims Act are significant, a minimum of $5,000 per claim. Read the AMA Wire article.  

OIG Warns that Drug Co-Payment Coupons Violate Federal Laws

Last month the Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a Special Advisory Bulletin simultaneously with a report from the Office of Evaluation & Inspections (OEI) concerning pharmaceutical manufacturers' co-payment coupons. The OIG is reminding the pharmaceutical industry that drug coupons may not be used by beneficiaries of federal health programs, including Medicare, as this violates the anti-kickback statute and the False Claims Act. The bulletin recognized the immediate benefit of these coupons to beneficiaries, but reasoned that they ultimately harm federal programs and the beneficiaries. It suggested that manufacturers donate to independent charities that provide financial support for patients without access to particular medications. In addition to warning pharmaceutical companies, the OIG warned that pharmacies are also subject to sanctions for violating the federal laws for honoring the coupons.  

EV-D68 Cases Confirmed by CDC

On September 17, the CDC confirmed New Jersey's first case of enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) and other cases have since been confirmed. Read the DOH FAQ below on confirming cases of EV-D68:

Can individual doctors and hospitals confirm cases of EV-D68?

EV-D68 can only be diagnosed by doing specific lab tests on specimens (samples) and that few laboratories are able to perform. While many hospitals and some doctor's offices can test ill patients to see if they have an EV infection, very few can do specific testing to determine the type of EV, like EV-D68. There are over 100 EV infections and specific typing of specimens is needed to confirm whether the virus is D68. In order to make the final diagnosis of EV-D68, the CDC in Atlanta would have to confirm the test on the sample. Read more FAQ's.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Rescheduling of Hydrocodone Combination Products to Schedule II-New Prescriptions Required

CMS End-to-End ICD-10 Testing- Deadline to Volunteer October 3

CMS will offer end-to-end testing to a small sample group of providers from January 26 through January 30, 2015. The sample group will be selected from providers, suppliers and other submitters who volunteer to participate. Interested in being considered for the end-to-end testing? Complete the Volunteer Testing Form

ICD-10: One-Year Away

October 1, 2015 is the deadline to transition to the ICD-10 code set. MSNJ encourages all physicians to begin preparing for implementation by working with software vendors and testing their systems. Read the AMA Wire article and view more resources on MSNJ's website.

Upcoming Meaningful Use Deadlines 

Physicians participating in the Electronic Health Record (EHR) meaningful use program are running out of time to meet requirements as deadlines approach. CMS reported that nearly one-half of physicians have not yet started Stage 1 of the program. The deadline to attest for Stage 1 has already passed and those who did not successfully attest by September 30, 2014 will face a penalty up to two percent of their 2015 payments. For physicians in Stage 2 of the program, the deadline to attest to meaningful use is December 31, 2014. The last day to start reporting is October 3, 2014, if they are to meet the 90-day requirement. So far, less than one percent of physicians have participated in Stage 2. The following are the upcoming deadlines:

• Stage 2: October 3, 2014 - Last day to begin reporting
• Stage 2: December 31, 2014- Deadline to attest

Read more.

Princeton Insurance - Gold Level Partner   

Contact: Lois Hogya, CPCU, Vice President of Underwriting and Marketing/Communications
Corporate Address: 746 Alexander Road, Princeton, NJ 08540-6305
Phone: 800.334.0588

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5322, Princeton, NJ 08543-5322
Phone: 609.951.5862
Fax: 609.734.8461
E-mail: lois.hogya@princetoninsurance.com
Website 

Princeton Insurance exists to protect the New Jersey healthcare community and partner with them in their efforts to provide outstanding patient care. Measured either by numbers of policyholders or total premiums, Princeton is the leading healthcare malpractice insurer in New Jersey, with the longest continuous market presence of any company offering coverage in the Garden State.

 

Rated A++ (Superior) by independent rating agency A.M. Best, Princeton Insurance is part of the Medical Protective/Berkshire Hathaway corporate family. Medical Protective has been protecting healthcare providers since 1899 and is the nation's highest-rated healthcare malpractice carrier, according to both S&P and A.M. Best. MedPro provides unmatched strength, winning defense, and innovative solutions to physicians, dentists and other healthcare providers in all fifty states.

 

Princeton's local knowledge and expertise, joined together with MedPro's nationwide presence and Berkshire's unmatched financial strength, result in an even stronger partnership with our policyholders to meet the challenges they face and provide the protection they deserve.

 

To find out more about Princeton Insurance or to obtain a no-obligation premium indication, contact your independent insurance agent or visit our website.

Member Resource Guide   

Check out the current MSNJ Member Resource Guide! Inside, you will find a complete listing of partners by service/product category, along with contact information. Also, be sure to check out the individual Corporate Partner pages on our website as some offer additional discounts to members!

It is important to note that MSNJ does not endorse any vendor, service, or product. However, we encourage members to please consider our Corporate Partners first as the financial support received from these organizations is vital to our association. It is our hope that their investment in MSNJ will help keep your membership dues and programming affordable.