Please join MSNJ in welcoming our new members for 2014!

MSNJ serves as the voice of physicians and is the only society representing all specialties and practice models in the state. We offer unparalleled advocacy and practice support.

Numbers matter...each member adds to our influence! Help us spread the word...joining is simple! Visit www.msnj.org/membership for more information.

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.

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. 

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

More information and registration. 

Seabrook House is offering a complimentary CME event with Atlantic and Cape County Medical Societies on "Identifying and Addressing Addiction in my Private Practice" on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm at Avalon Country Club. Click here for more information and registration.

Carroll McNulty & Kull LLC - Gold Level Partner   

Contact: Michael Moroney, Esq.; Catherine J. Flynn, Esq.
Address: 120 Mountain View Boulevard, Post Office Box 650, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920
Phone: 908.848.6300
Fax: 908.848.6310
E-mail:  mmoroney@cmk.com; cflynn@cmk.com
Website 

Health care is one of the most complex, fastest growing and heavily regulated industries, requiring specialized legal counseling and representation. At CMK, our health care attorneys dedicate their time to understanding our clients' business issues, while staying informed of the rapidly changing compliance and regulatory landscape. We provide state and federal regulatory advice, compliance counseling and health care litigation services to both institutional and individual clients. Our clients include academic and community hospitals, for-profit and not-for-profit health care systems, private practice physicians and physician organizations, nursing staffs, ambulatory care providers, nursing homes, home health care providers, professional medical societies and trade associations, medical staff organizations and allied health care providers.

CMK's health care attorneys have specialized health law litigation experience with specific concentrations enabling them to provide client focused legal services in professional liability defense, credentialing & licensure matters and fraud investigations. We develop and implement regulatory compliance programs required to keep our clients in line with federal and state mandates. CMK's health law attorneys are members of the American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA), a professional organization dedicated to serving the health care industry and its practitioners; they routinely present on various hot topics within the health care industry to clients, physician groups and medical societies.

CMK provides health care law services including counseling and representation on matters involving:

•  Accountable Care Organizations
• Counsel to Professional Medical Societies
• Coding (ICD-10)
• Defense of fraud & abuse investigations
• Electronic Medical Records (EMR)
• EMTALA
• Guardianships
•  HIPAA/HITECH compliance & enforcement matters
• Hospital general counsel representation
• Medical Staff counseling, quality and peer review
• Physician practice group business planning & transactional services
• Professional licensure & Board of Medical Examiners matters
• Professional liability defense
• Regulatory compliance programs
• Third party reimbursement

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.

Ask Congress to Repeal the Medicare SGR Now!
Over the past decade Congress has applied a patch 17 times to avert the imminent and significant Medicare payment cut that would occur under the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. This year, bipartisan, bicameral legislation was introduced that would have repealed the SGR and implemented sustainable payment reform, but Congress failed to pass the legislation. Now, during the lame duck session and before the payment cuts are implemented, we urge all members to contact Congress and ask that the SGR be repealed. The cost of the fix is lower now than for all of the combined 17 patches. Please write or call AMA's Physicians Grassroots Network hotline at (800) 833-6354. Read more about seizing the opportunity to fix Medicare during the lame duck session. 

MSNJ wrote to our Senators and Representatives asking them to pass Medicare payment reform legislation now.  

See an op ed on the importance of repealing the SGR below. 

Revolving Reference Committee to Hear Three Resolutions
On December 1 at 7:00pm, MSNJ's Revolving Reference Committee (RRC) will hear three resolutions via webinar. 

1. Workforce Study of Physicians and their Practice Patterns in NJ- Morris County
2. Recreational Use and Abuse of Prescription Drugs - Hudson County 
3. End of Life Care CME Requirements - Union County Co-sponsored by:  Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Monmouth/Ocean, and Morris Counties

Information on these resolutions may be found on MSNJ's website and by taking the following steps:

1. Log into the website;
2. Click on "Communities" located in the main menu across the top of the screen;
3. Then click on "Committees and Councils" from the menu on the left;
4. Next click on "Revolving Reference Committee," which is the 2nd option from the top;

The web page will include information on the RRC as well as information on each resolution and submitted comments.

Webinar:  Audio Login Call 866.740.1260 Enter access code: 8961259

Quality Recognition Awards

The MSNJ Biennial Quality Recognition Award recognizes the outstanding physician members who demonstrate a commitment to quality, continuous improvement, leadership, and patient satisfaction.

The physician member needs to achieve 10 points every two years by meeting certain criteria. Awards will be distributed in January of each year.

Download the award application today! 

Please return to MSNJ via email at membership@msnj.org by December 15, 2014.

Call for Candidates

MSNJ is accepting applications from candidates interested in positions on the Board of Trustees, AMA Delegation, Judicial Council and various positions. Please review the MSNJ Potential Candidates List for 2015 and read a brief synopsis of the positions and expectations. Your involvement is key to the Success of MSNJ.

If you are interested in running for a position or have questions about specific vacancies, please feel free to contact your county executive or Sue Hoisington at 609-896-1766 x 207.

The Deadline to submit a request is Wednesday, January 21, 2015. Watch e-News for weekly updates on Declared Candidates. The Nominating Committee meeting is on Sunday, February 1, 2015.

DeGroot Award Nominations

MSNJ is accepting nominations for the DeGroot Award which will be conferred at the MSNJ Inaugural Gala of the 223rd President, Steven Berkowitz, MD on May 9, 2015. The DeGroot Award was established by resolution to honor the selfless work of Dr. Robert DeGroot in service to the medical profession. The DeGroot Award will be given to the individual whose selfless and idealistic work benefits humankind and not himself or herself.

Nominations should be made by submitting a brief narrative to info@msnj.org by close of business on Friday, February 20, 2015.

Physician Input Needed for RTPBI Survey

The National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) is looking for physician input through a survey to help determine the scope of content for a future real-time prescription benefit inquiry(RTPBI) transaction. An RTPBI transaction is intended to provide patient-specific prescription benefit information at the point of care. The survey will close on Thursday, December 18, 2014 at 12:00pm EST. View a PDF copy of the survey questions. Please note: responses must be submitted online through the above survey link.

ACA Updates:
House Republicans Sue Administration over Implementation
Last week the House Republicans filed a long-threatened lawsuit against the Obama Administration over implementation of the Affordable Care Act. The suit alleges that the President exceeded his authority by twice delaying the employer mandate and associated penalties.

Meeting on Bill to Amend the Sunshine Act to Exempt Medical Texts & Journals

MSNJ supports H.R. 5539 a bill introduced by Representative Michael Burgess, MD, (R. Texas), that would exempt medical texts and journals from reporting under the Sunshine Act. Read about a meeting led by the AMA and attended by the Editor in Chief of the New England Journal of Medicine and a physician from the Iowa Clinic.

Affordable Care Act and Health Care Coverage CME Articles

The following free CME articles are available through Medscape on how the Affordable Care Act has impacted health care coverage.

• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: why insurance matters.
• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: preventive services for the family. 
• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: protecting access to care for serious illness. 
• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: coverage to care. 
• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: immunization coverage. 
• Talking with patients about the Affordable Care Act: making the most of the Marketplace. 
• Your patients & you: test your knowledge on the Affordable Care Act.

Investigation of Contaminated Dietary Supplement - Fatal Gastrointestinal Mucormycosis in Connecticut Infant

The CDC, FDA and Connecticut Department of Public Health and Consumer Protection are investigating a fatal case of gastrointestinal (GI) mucormycosis in a premature infant in Connecticut who was given ABC Dophilus® Powder, a dietary supplement product containing viable microbial ingredients. The product was purchased from Solgar, Inc. in Leonia, New Jersey. It claimed to have "probiotic" properties and is marketed for infants and children. Later testing of the same lot of unopened Solgar ABC Dophilus® Powder revealed contamination with Rhizopus oryzae. Read more.

Report Once in 2014 for Medicare Quality Reporting Programs

Individual eligible professionals and group practices participating in the 2014 PQRS program will be able to report once on a single set of clinical quality measures (CQMs) and depending on eligibility, satisfy some of the various requirements of several of the following Medicare quality reporting programs:

• PQRS
• Value-Based Payment Modifier
• Medicare Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program
• Medicare Shared Savings Program Accountable Care Organization (ACO)
• Pioneer ACO
• Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative (CPCI)

Read more on how to report only once.

Health Insurance Marketplace and Medicare Open Enrollment

Open enrollment for 2015 health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) began November 15 and runs through February 15, 2015. Some health plans purchased through the Marketplace will automatically renew, while others will not. Each insured will receive notice from the insurance company that states whether the plan will automatically renew for 2015 or the coverage will end effective December 31. 2014. Individuals with automatically renewing plans do not need to stay with their current plan and may choose a new one. Those with plans that do not automatically enroll must enroll in a plan by December 15, 2014 to obtain coverage beginning January 1, 2015. All individuals, including those whose plans are automatically renewed, must update their applications annually with any important changes.

2015 Medicare Participation

The 2015 open enrollment period for physicians runs November 14 through December 31, 2014. More information about the open enrollment period can be found on Novitas Solutions' webpage. View the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule fees for service rendered in calendar year 2015 here. View AMA's Medicare Participation Toolkit. Please note: AMA has not yet updated their Participation Toolkit, however the information still applies.

ICD-10: Less than 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. View resources on MSNJ's website.  

NJ DOBI Standard ICD-10 Readiness Survey - Respond by December 12 

The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) ICD-10 Implementation Task Force, which MSNJ participates in with NJHA and many New Jersey payors and hospitals, is conducting their second standardized ICD-10 Readiness Survey to collect your practice's ICD-10 implementation project coordinator's contact information, as well as information regarding your ICD-10 readiness. The goal is to have all healthcare trading partners respond to one standard survey. Your survey responses will be shared. Everyone who participates in the survey will receive the results in Excel format. Trading partners, including participating payors, may use this information to follow your progress and schedule a time to begin end-to-end testing with you. This survey will be reissued periodically so you can continue to update information as you continue to make progress. Only one person should register and submit a response on behalf of your organization. Once you have done so, you will have access to all other trading partners that have submitted survey responses. Please keep in mind that registered users will also have access to your information. We urge members to participate in this survey and begin communicating with payors about transitioning to ICD-10. Submit your survey response by December 12, 2014.

View November's Coding Tip of the Month for information on the use of G codes in ICD-10 for diseases of the Nervous System (G00 to G99)