AAFP President’s Message: Fighting for a Fee Schedule that Works for You, Your Patients

AAFP

AAFP President, Michael Munger, MD, FAAFP responds to CMS’s recently released 2019 Medicare physician fee schedule and Quality Payment Program proposed rule. “Given the potential impact this proposed rule would have on family physicians and our patients, as AAFP president, I felt it important to provide an update on both the proposal and the AAFP’s related advocacy work. I understand there are concerns about this proposal. The AAFP shares these concerns and is expressing its misgivings to HHS and CMS as we simultaneously prepare our comprehensive response to the proposed rule. I would urge each of you to access the resources made available by the AAFP to assist you in learning more about the proposed rule and its potential impact on your practice. We have produced a summary on the subject and published some initial analysis in the Fighting for Family Medicine newsletter via the In the Trenches blog. In addition, earlier this month, the AAFP hosted a webinar outlining the proposed rule and its content, featuring staff from CMS. An archived version of the webinar and the accompanying slide deck are available to all AAFP members. Click here to read Dr. Munger’s entire response, covering goals, guidelines, E & M codes, primary care add-on payment code, multiple procedure payment reduction and patient-centered primary care.

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AAFP Offers Educational Resources on JUULing

AAFP

The AAFP has released resources to educate family physicians and patients about a new brand of e-cigarette known as JUUL, which is popular among adolescents and young adults. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb pledged to expand the Youth Tobacco Prevention Plan to include efforts to stop young people from using tobacco products, focusing on e-cigarettes such as JUUL. The full article Rise of ‘JUULing’  Among Youth Sparks Sharp Response explains about the new product and its harmful effects. In addition, AAFP has some helpful resources to educate you and your patients.  JUULing Fact Sheet for Physicians and JUULing Fact Sheet for Patients Also check out the Tobacco and Nicotine Cessation Toolkit, and its Ask and Act tobacco cessation program resources.

And don’t forget the Kansas Tobacco Quitline is a free resource for your patients by phone (1-800-QUIT-NOW) by text or mobile application, and online www.KSquit.org.

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Kansas Well-Represented at National Conference of FM Residents and Medical Students

KAFP/AAFP

The AAFP’s National Conference of Family Medicine Residents & Medical Students in Kansas City was held August 2-4. The three-day conference features workshops, social and networking events, an expo featuring representatives from hundreds of family medicine residencies and the resident and student congresses. The 2018 conference set new attendance records once again. According to preliminary numbers, the AAFP hosted some 5,300 people Aug. 2-4, including 1,800 medical students and 1,200 residents. The KAFP-Foundation provides funding to each campus to pay Kansas students’ registrations. KAFP was pleased to have the following residents and students represent Kansas at the conference:

Residents:

  • Kansas Resident Alternate Delegate: Zach Degner, MD (KU FM Residency)
  • Kansas Resident Delegate: Raghuveer “Veer” Vedala, MD (Wesley FM Residency)

Students:

  • Kansas Student Alternate Delegate: Emily Lenherr (KU School of Medicine – Salina campus)
  • Kansas Student Delegate: John Price (KU School of Medicine – KC campus)

Check out this photo of Drs. Zach Degner (left) and Veer Vedala (center) with student, John Price (right) enjoying the conference!

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Focus on Immunizations

AAFP

The AAFP’s national public service announcement campaign (PSA) continues in August with a segment on shingles. Watch the PSA about the shingles vaccine. Each PSA educates the audience about an issue and urges them to visit familydoctor.org for more information. Please help educate your patients by referring them to the familydoctor.org website.

Below is the schedule of monthly PSAs:

Ultimately, it is important that patients, after viewing the PSAs, will gain a sense of empowerment over their own health. Increasing patients’ knowledge of important health issues that affect them is intended to help them feel more prepared and willing to talk about them with their family physician.

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Refine Emergency Care Skills, Master Best Practices

AAFP

Learn the latest evidence-based treatment and evaluation information with help from this comprehensive self-study package: Emergency and Urgent Care Self-Study Package. Recorded from the AAFP’s Emergency and Urgent Care live course, this 26-session video self-study package allows you to both hone your clinical skills and review key issues that include opioid education, OB emergencies, DNR discussions, and sepsis—on a schedule that works best for you—in a variety of formats. The self-study package is approved for up to 22.75 Prescribed credits.

Be sure to use the source code 4MYCHAPTER during checkout to help benefit the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians. A portion of the price of each AAFP self-study package you purchase will go directly to KAFP to help support local initiatives when you use the code 4MYCHAPTER. Thank you for your support!

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Support the KAFP and Earn CME

AAFP

Support the organization dedicated to serving your needs as a family physician in Kansas with the purchase of an AAFP self-study package.

Purchase an AAFP self-study package using the source code 4MYCHAPTER during checkout to help benefit KAFP.

A portion of the price of each package you buy will go directly to our chapter to support local initiatives.

Using AAFP self-study packages to enhance your expertise and expand your knowledge on common family medicine topics. Featuring recorded audio and video presentations from current AAFP live courses, these interactive packages include:

  • 20-30 hours of content, with 18-32 lectures between 30 and 60 minutes in length
  • Opportunities to report CME and evaluate after each lecture
  • Interactive quiz interface to briefly halt the presentations and choose an answer
  • 200-plus page full-color PDF of the slides
  • Post assessment (online)

Select a topic that meets your interests. Choose from 10 different titles, including but not limited to Emergency and Urgent Care, Care of Chronic Conditions, Adult Medicine, and Child and Adolescent Health.

Earn CME when and where you want to and support our chapter at the same time.

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AAFP Summarizes Proposed 2019 Medicare Fee Schedule

AAFP

The proposed fee schedule CMS recently released makes significant changes to codes family physicians use every day. AAFP is already hard at work analyzing the changes and preparing what will certainly be extensive comments. In the meantime, you can read the Academy’s initial summary of the 1,472-page document.

Read more.

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Support the KAFP and Earn CME

AAFP

Earn CME while you support the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians. A portion of the price of each AAFP self-study package you purchase will go directly to KAFP to help support local initiatives. Use AAFP self-study packages to enhance your expertise and expand your knowledge on common family medicine topics. Featuring recorded audio and video presentations from current AAFP live courses.

Here’s how:

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National PSA Campaign to Launch Immunizations PSA on August 1

AAFP

The AAFP’s national public service announcement campaign (PSA) continues in August with a segment on shingles. Each PSA will educate the audience about an issue and urge them to visit familydoctor.org for more information. Please help us educate our patients by referring them to the familydoctor.org website.

The following familydoctor.org months and/or topics will be highlighted and the PSAs will be released the first day of the appropriate month:

  • May – Mental and Emotional Health (bullying; launched)
  • July – Back to School (flu and the importance of personal hygiene; launched)
  • Aug – Immunizations (shingles for adults starting at 50 years of age)
  • Sept – Sports/Exercise at Every Age (concussions)
  • Oct – Family Health and Safety (gun safety)
  • Nov – Addiction and Recovery (opioid abuse and safe pill storage)

Each PSA has an English and Spanish version as well as radio and television formats. The August PSA will be released August 1.

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Health is Primary August Toolkit is Available

AAFP

August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). The Health is Primary campaign (www.healthisprimary.org) is participating in NIAM, and will focus on emphasizing the importance of immunizations across the lifespan – for babies, children, teens and adults – in preventing diseases and protecting public health. The August toolkit (www.healthisprimary.org) is available. Help spread the word on social media and use hashtags: #MakeHealthPrimary #ImmunizationsarePrimary #NIAM18

 

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