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Dec. 13, 2015
Vol. 4, No. 66
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IMPORTANT
INFORMATION ON PQRS
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TMA
asking CMS to hold off on Medicare penalties
An error
on the part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
penalizes
some physicians, forcing those affected by the blunder to appeal a
potential payment cut by
Dec. 16.
Last month, the agency announced it had
"issues" with data submitted by physicians who participated
in the CMS
Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) and value-based
payment modifier (VBM) programs. CMS also had "issues"
with how it used that data to calculate payment penalties.
The hassle caused by CMS means those physicians who took
part in PQRS and VBM have to dust off their quality and cost reports
to determine whether they're among the thousands at risk of incurring
payment
penalties come Jan. 1, 2016.
Click here for
more information.
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Providing
an Optimistic view of medicine
Dr. Jayesh Shah, incoming president of the Bexar County
Medical Society, spoke to the Optimist Club of San Antonio on
Tuesday, Dec. 8. Shah will be sworn in as the society's new president
on Jan. 23, 2016.
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Our
sister city in India, Chennai, has been hit very hard by recent
flooding and the death toll is approaching 300.
The city has also suffered from more than $2 billion in
economic losses and is struggling to deal with more than a million
displaced people.
And yet, the spirit of Chennai has not been
extinguished. It is burning brighter than ever with neighbors
rescuing each other and strangers cooking food and distributing aid.
Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians are throwing
their temples, mosques, gurudwaras, and churches open to shelter the
displaced.
We want to salute this spirit of Chennai, our beloved
sister city, by tipping our hats and pledge to stand with them.
Here are some
facts about Chennai:
- Chennai is the 5th largest
city in India with a population of more than 8 million
- Industries: Automobile,
Petrochemical industries and refineries, Information
Technology, Healthcare, Education, Movie making, Arts and
culture, Tourism
- Chennai has a bustling
automobile industry and is referred to as "The Detroit of
India."
- Has been named the 2nd best
food city in the world by National Geographic.
- Has been named the 9th best
cosmopolitan city in the world by The Lonely Planet
- Chennai has 80.73% Hindus,
9.45% Muslims, 7.72% Christians, 0.06% Sikhs, 0.06%
Buddhists, 1.11% Jains, 0.83% living in peace and harmony
HATS
OFF CHENNAI- We salute your spirit!
Here
are ways that you can help:
Take
a photo of yourself as your tip your hat to Chennai and its people.
Post it on Facebook and nominate at least 5 of your friends to do the
same. Include this link with your post and ask your friends to make a
donation toward the Chennai relief efforts. Every penny counts and
Chennai needs our help!
Anuja
SA, PO Box 591801, San Antonio, TX 78259
Anuja
is 501 (C) {3} organization.
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Addressing
Child Abuse and Neglect in 2016
The Public Health and Patient
Advocacy Committee at BCMS is looking for
doctors who would like to volunteer their time to support efforts to
better address issues of child abuse and child neglect in Bexar and
the surrounding counties.
This adjunct committee would focus on researching the
issue, collecting data, looking at what is already being done
locally, what is being done elsewhere that has been effective and
then making recommendations to the full committee.
The PH&PA Committee meets on the first Wednesday of
every odd month at the BCMS offices. For more information or to
volunteer to participate please
contact committee liaison Mike Thomas at 210-582-6399.
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Supreme
Court to rule on theory underlying many healthcare fraud suits
Summary of article from Modern Healthcare:
By Lisa Schencker | December 8,
2015
A case now before the U.S. Supreme Court could
mean fewer fraud lawsuits filed against healthcare providers. Or it
could at least give them more clarity about what constitutes a
violation of the law, experts say.
The Supreme Court announced Friday it would hear Universal
Health Services v. United States ex rel Escobar, a case that focuses
on one theory whistle-blowers and the government use in bringing
False Claims Act cases to court. The act makes it illegal to
knowingly submit fraudulent bills to the government, such as for
services not actually performed.
In a variation of fraud claims, some whistle-blowers allege that
providers submitted false claims by failing to follow certain
regulations. Providers sometimes are held liable for not following
such regulations even if the government never explicitly stated that
following a regulation was a condition of payment, and even if the
provider never explicitly vouched that it had complied with the
regulation.
The Supreme Court will consider whether whistle-blowers and the
government should be allowed to bring FCA cases under this theory,
known as implied certification.
Click
here for full article.
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A CIRCLE OF FRIENDS SILVER SPONSOR
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Silver-level
Circle of Friends sponsors contribute $3,000
or
more to BCMS annually.
Support
our sponsors; our sponsors support us!
Thank
you to our BCMS Circle of Friends sponsors! This information is sent
on behalf of a valued sponsor, but it is not an endorsement.
Donations from Circle of Friends sponsors help keep down the cost of
dues and allow BCMS to continue to provide quality service to its
members. The society continues its pledge to you and only will
involve itself in services and programs that benefit you, the member,
and your patient.
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Bexar County
Medical Society
6243 I-10 West,
Suite 600
San Antonio, TX
78201
210-301-4391
www.bcms.org
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The
Weekly Dose is a service of the
Bexar County Medical Society.
Some
of the suggestions conveyed may not be applicable to your practice
today,
but
the goal is to offer information over time that returns value
in
excess of the cost of your membership.
If
you would like to recommend future topics to share with your colleagues,
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rights reserved. Unauthorized use prohibited.
Copyright
© 2015 Bexar County Medical Society, San Antonio, Texas.
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