Welcome to The ACP Advocate,
Launch of the new physician payment system for Medicare might seem like a long way off, but in some ways it's right around the corner. That's because physicians' performance next year -- 2017 -- is proposed to form the basis for their reimbursement when the program begins in 2019.
Today’s first article notes how ACP is urging CMS to make a number of adjustments to its plans for MACRA. It provides a detailed list of recommendations, starting with ways to simplify reporting requirements.
Our second article describes how Dr. Nitin Damle, president of ACP, recently drew on what he sees in his practice day in and day out to take the campaign against the rising cost of prescription drugs to Capitol Hill. He gave members of a Senate Judiciary subcommittee real-world examples from his internal medicine practice of how the escalating costs affect patients every day.
Finally, with the Orlando nightclub massacre and the attack on Dallas police officers fresh in people's memory, ACP has escalated its efforts to get the American public and its elected officials to recognize gun violence in the country as a serious public health threat and take action. ACP's efforts seem to be bearing fruit. In recent weeks, the College was one of the leading organizations that encouraged AMA leaders to go on record in support of universal background checks for firearm purchases and the closure of loopholes.
Our next ACP Advocate Newsletter will be distributed on August 19th and will feature looks at the just-announced CPC+ regions and the recent ACP advocacy "win" with passage of the CARA legislation.
For more coverage of what's happening in Washington, take a look at my award-winning blog, The ACP Advocate Blog by Bob Doherty. You can also follow me on Twitter @BobDohertyACP.
As always, please send your feedback and suggestions on this newsletter to: TheACPAdvocate@acponline.org.
Yours truly,
Bob Doherty
Senior Vice President
Governmental Affairs and Public Policy
American College of Physicians |
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| In the news |
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ACP Offers a Raft of Suggestions on How to Make MACRA Better
Detailed list of recommendations from the College starts with ways to simplify the reporting requirements
Launch of the new physician payment system for Medicare might seem like a long way off, but in some ways it's right around the corner. That's because, as it now stands, physicians' performance next year -- 2017... (read more)
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Congress Hears From ACP on What High Drug Prices Mean to Patients
Escalating costs lead to greater incidence of disease and ultimately greater costs, ACP president testifies
Drawing on what he sees in his practice day in and day out, the president of the American College of Physicians took the campaign against the rising cost of prescription drugs to Capitol Hill late last month.... (read more)
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ACP Steps Up Advocacy Efforts to Tame Gun Violence in America
Physicians urged to take the lead in pressuring legislators to act
With the Orlando nightclub massacre and the sniper attack on Dallas police officers fresh in people's memory, the American College of Physicians has escalated its efforts to get the American public and its ele... (read more)
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| About this newsletter |
| The ACP Advocate is an e-newsletter, edited by the College's Washington, DC governmental affairs division, created to provide you, our members, with succinct news about public policy issues affecting internal medicine and patient care. To learn more about ACP's Advocacy and to access the ACP Advocate archives, go to www.acponline.org/advocacy. |
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| In focus |
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Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule |
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ACP's initial review of a new proposed rule on the 2017 Physician Fee Schedule by CMS looks promising for primary care physicians providing high value, coordinated and patient-centered care to their patients enrolled in Medicare. The proposal rule, combined with other recent policies proposed by CMS, will effectively help break down long-standing barriers to effective treatment of patients enrolled in Medicare who have chronic and/or behavioral health conditions. See the link above for ACP's full press release on the proposed rule and to view the rule in its entirety. |
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CMS' Open Payment Program Posts 2015 Data |
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CMS has published the 2015 Open Payments (sometimes called the “Sunshine Act”) data, along with newly submitted and updated payment records for 2013 and 2014. The Open Payments program requires that transfers of value by drug, device, biological, and medical supply manufacturers to physicians and teaching hospitals be published on a public website. |
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Supreme Court Upholds Affirmative Action Program |
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The Supreme court recently ruled in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, that the University's program admitting some students with consideration of race is constitutional. ACP weighed in on this issue via an Amicus brief with the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) and 31 other organizations, urging the Court to uphold considerations of race and ethnicity in the medical school admissions process. ACP supports the Court-upheld policies that allow institutions of higher education to consider a person's race and ethnicity as one factor in determining admission in order to counter the impact of current discriminatory practices and the legacy of past discrimination practices. |
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