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MMS Vital Signs This Week

 
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September 26, 2014


MMS Endorses State’s Approach to EHR Licensure Requirement 

 
The MMS this week filed testimony supporting new Board of Medicine regulations for a new state law that requires physicians to demonstrate competency in the use of electronic health records as a condition of licensure.
 
MMS Vice President James S. Gessner, MD, said the board and staff have interpreted the law “in a logical manner that is productive and serves the interests of the public.” Dr. Gessner will testify at the public hearing on the regulations on Sept. 29. 
 
The MMS strongly encourages all physicians to submit comments on the regulations. The comment period concludes Oct. 3. Comments may be submitted via email to Eileen.Prebensen@state.ma.us. Any attached documents must be in Word format. All comments submitted are public records and will be posted to the state’s website.
 
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Registration Now Open for the 2014 MMS Interim Meeting
 
The 2014 Interim Meeting of the House of Delegates will be held Friday, December 5, at MMS headquarters, and Saturday, December 6, at the Newton Marriott.
 
Visit the Interim Meeting website for information on all events, to register, and reserve your hotel room.
 
Important Dates:
 
 
 
 

Call for Nominations: Senior Volunteer Physician of the Year Award
 
The Committee on Senior Volunteer Physicians is seeking nominations for the 2015 Senior Volunteer Physician of the Year Award. Nominees must be MMS members 60 years of age or older. The deadline for nominations is Friday, October 31, 2014. 
 
 

MMS Annual Awards Nomination Deadline is Dec. 2 
 
Nomination applications now being accepted through Dec. 2 for the following annual awards: MMS Lifetime Achievement Award; Special Award for Excellence in Medical Service; Award for Distinguished Service to the Massachusetts Medical Society; Grant V. Rodkey, MD, Award for Outstanding Contributions to Medical Education; and the Henry Ingersoll Bowditch Award for Excellence in Public Health. These awards will be presented at the MMS Annual Meeting in 2015.
 
 
 

Student and Resident Health Information Technology Awards Program Now Accepting Applications 
 
Applications are now being accepted for the MMS Information Technology in Medicine Awards for medical students and residents. 
 
 
 

International Medical Graduates: From Graduate Training to Green Cards
 
Immigration attorneys Roy Watson and Greg Siskind will address issues such as screening job opportunities, navigating the H-1B quota, J-1 and other types of waivers, and Green Card options. Location: MMS headquarters, Wed., Oct. 15, 6:30- 8:30 p.m.
 
 
 

11th Annual Fall Forum for Free Health Care Programs
 
Join us to discuss the role of free medical programs within the Massachusetts health care landscape on Wednesday, Oct. 1, from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. at MMS headquarters. RSVP is required. Please respond to Carolyn Maher at (781) 434-7311, or via email at cmaher@mms.org.
 

Important Changes in Your MMS Member Renewal Statement
 
Your 2015 MMS membership renewal statement will contain two changes from previous years. The billing address for MMS membership renewal statements has been changed to a processing office in Dallas, TX. If you have any questions, contact MMS Member processing at (800) 322-2303 ext. 7495, or mmsprocessing@mms.org.
 
Also, the MMS is no longer billing on behalf of the AMA. You will receive a statement from the AMA to renew your 2015 AMA membership. If you have questions, contact the AMA at (800) 262-3211, or visit the AMA's website to join the AMA or renew your membership.
 


MMS Events
 
Live CME Activities 
 
Unless otherwise noted, all events are held at MMS headquarters, 860 Winter St., Waltham.
 
Friday, November 14, 2014
 
Annual Oration: Medical Education Across the Continuum
At the MMS Interim Meeting
Friday, December 5, 2014
 
Ethics Forum: Ethics and Pay-For-Performance
At the MMS Interim Meeting
Friday, December 5, 2014 
 
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
 
Online CME Activities
 
Featured Online CME
 
 
Be ready to address your patients' questions about genetically modified organisms (GMOs).  This online course presents a balanced view of the scientific evidence on the health risks and benefits of GMOs by evaluating and summarizing the positions of various consumer and medical organizations.
 
Mass. Required Risk Management Credit.
 
Fulfill your license renewal requirements for risk management, end-of-life care, effective pain management and prescribing of controlled substances.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The above activity has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
 
For additional risk management online CME activities, visit www.massmed.org/cme.
 


CDC and WHO Boost Estimates of Ebola’s Impact
 
World Health Organization officials wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine that at least 20,000 people could be infected with the Ebola virus by November, with an estimated fatality rate of 70%. In a separate report, the CDC offered a worst-case scenario for Liberia and Sierra Leona alone of 1.4 million infections by Jan. 20, 2015, taking into account their estimates of underreporting.
 
Related:
 
 
 
 
 

Partners, Coakley Agree to Price Controls at Hallmark

Partners Healthcare and Attorney General Martha Coakley have asked a state judge to approve an amended agreement that requires Hallmark Health System to hold price increases to the level of inflation through 2020. That is the same price ceiling that the state and South Shore Hospital agreed to earlier this year.
 

Newburyport Practice Group Sues Steward

The Whittier IPA has sued Steward Health Care Network for improperly withholding payments after the group left Steward for the Beth Israel physician network earlier this year.
 

Nurses’ Group Sues Brigham and Women’s Over Flu Shot Mandate
 
The Massachusetts Nurses Association has sued Brigham and Women's Hospital for requiring nurses to get flu shots.
 

Radius Specialty Hospital to Close Two Facilities; Unions Sue

Radius Specialty Hospital is closing its rehabilitation facilities in Quincy and Roxbury and dismissing more than 350 workers. Two unions representing the workers are suing, alleging that the hospital did not comply with federal law.
 

Officials Confirm State’s First Enterovirus Case
 
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed that an 8-year-old girl with a history of asthma is the first confirmed case of Enterovirus D68 in the state. The virus has been confirmed in 38 states. Related: Outbreak Escalates; Mystifies Scientists
 

EHR Vendor Blocks Patient Data in Billing Dispute with Maine Practice

A German EHR vendor engaged in a billing dispute with a small practice in Presque Isle has prevented the practice from accessing past patient records.
 

Diabetes Rates Shown Leveling Off

A study CDC researchers found that rates of the disease more than doubled from 1990 to 2008, but those rates leveled off between 2008 and 2012.
 

More Insurers Expected to Participate in ACA Health Exchanges

The Obama administration predicts that 25 percent more insurers will participate in the federal and state health care marketplaces when the next open enrollment period begins November 15.
 

Activists Call for FDA Commissioner's Ouster

A group of doctors, addiction specialists and family members are calling for the replacement of Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, arguing that the agency under her leadership has exacerbated the nationwide overdose epidemic.
 

Pharma Decries FDA's Social Media Rules

Pharmaceutical companies complain that the FDA’s new guidelines unfairly hold them responsible for misinformation about their products posted online by third parties. 
   

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