The Physicians Advocacy Institute (PAI), of which CSMS is a part of, recently sent a letter in response to CMS' request for information on the need for modernization of "anti-kickback" laws. CSMS contributed significantly to the development of this letter and it is consistent with our previous comments to CMS regarding CMMI, APMs, stark and self-referral statutes and initiatives.Three high-level recommendations are included in the letter: Establish clear exceptions to the Statute and CMP restrictions for payment models and demonstrations and other arrangements that promote physician-led initiatives to value-based care. Allow for physicians to align with other high-quality providers (clinical …

CSMS is committed to being your voice at the state Capitol and in Washington DC. Throughout this election year cycle, our dedicated team has reached out to those running for office to make sure that they know about the struggles and frustrations of our physician members. We are pleased to share highlights with you now and encourage you to vote on November 6th in support of the candidates who support the practice of medicine and quality health care. The candidates running for Congress, Governor and Attorney General were invited to share a statement with CSMS members regarding healthcare and the …

October 4, 2018CSMS voiced opposition to the proposed CVS Aetna merger at a CT Insurance Department (CID) public hearing. We have submitted testimony (available here) that challenges the merger on anti-trust grounds. A special thank you the American Medical Association (AMA) for their tremendous amount of support and assistance throughout this process and for providing additional testimony at this hearing. We will keep you informed of further developments. UPDATE: 10/11/18Department of Justice preliminary approved the merger of CVS and Aetna. CSMS and the AMA's oppositions were sited in a Think Advisor publication. Read the article here. UPDATE: 10/18/18The Connecticut Insurance Department has …

PAI's QPP Tip of the Month: 2019 Virtual Group Election Process Now OpenFor the 2019 participation year, physicians and other eligible clinicians (ECs) have the opportunity to participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) as part of a virtual group. Virtual Groups are a combination of two or more tax identification numbers (TINs) made up of solo practitioners or groups of 10 or fewer ECs who come together "virtually" (regardless of specialty or location). All ECs part of the Virtual Group receive the same aggregated MIPS score and corresponding payment adjustment across the Virtual Group.Virtual Group elections must be …

Presented by: Connecticut State Medical Society, The Physician Health Foundation, and the University of Connecticut Health Center, School of MedicineThe Physician Leadership Academy provides physicians with a comprehensive skill set, enhancing your ability to influence practice and policy development on a state and national level, as well as influence change within your healthcare organization.The Physician Leadership Academy is open to all young physicians as defined by the American Medical Association (40 years of age and younger or less than 8 years of practice post residency). It is free of charge to CSMS members. Sessions are held on Thursdays (November 15, …

Plus: Schematron, and Sample Files Are Now AvailableThe Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has published the 2019 CMS Quality Reporting Document Architecture (QRDA) Category III Implementation Guide (IG), Schematron, and Sample files. The 2019 CMS QRDA III IG will help eligible clinicians and eligible professionals report electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs), improvement activities, and/or promoting interoperability measures for the calendar year 2019 performance period.The IG provides technical instructions for QRDA III reporting for the following programs: Quality Payment Program: Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs) Comprehensive Primary Care Plus (CPC+) Promoting Interoperability (PI)The …

(October 2, 2018) North Haven, CT- Connecticut State Medical Society (CSMS) and CTHealthLink are pleased to announce a collaboration with the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy (OHS) to improve patient care through the interoperability and connectivity of health information in Connecticut.Connecticut Health Information Technology Officer Allan Hackney said, “CTHealthLink will provide a major connection to potentially thousands of physicians across the state; it’s an important part of our work to launch the state of Connecticut’s first statewide HIE linking doctors, hospitals, nursing facilities, home healthcare professionals, and others to give them a platform to exchange clinical and diagnostic data in …

September 27, 2018 (North Haven, CT) – At the 226th Annual Meeting of the Connecticut State Medical Society Claudia Gruss, MD of Norwalk was inaugurated as the 180th President of the nation’s oldest medical societies.Claudia Gruss, MD is a Wilton-based gastroenterologist at the Western Connecticut Medical Group – Wilton Primary and Specialty Care who has been a champion for women physicians and organized medicine throughout her career. She was proceeded by Steven Thornquist, MD who concluded his successful one-year term as the medical society’s 179th President.At the ceremony Dr. Thornquist proclaimed that, “(Dr. Gruss) is an insightful, thoughtful, and sincere …

September 27, 2018 (North Haven, CT) - The 2018 Connecticut State Medical Society (CSMS) Paul K. Maloney, Jr., MD Distinguished Service Award was presented to past CSMS President, Craig W. Czarsty, MD, DABFM, FAAFP of Watertown. The award was presented to Dr. Czarsty by CSMS President Steven Thornquist, MD at the 226th Annual Meeting of CSMS on September 27, 2018.The CSMS Paul K. Maloney, Jr., MD Distinguished Service Award is the highest honor that can be awarded a member. It was established to honor the life and work of Dr. Maloney, an eminent physician known for his exemplary service, active …

September 27, 2018 (North Haven, CT) – The 2018 Connecticut Medicine Healthcare Leader and Innovator Award (HLI) was presented to Joseph Feuerstein, MD of Weston. The award was presented Connecticut Medicine Editor Michael Deren, MD at the 226th Annual Meeting of the Connecticut State Medical Society on September 27, 2018.The Connecticut Medicine HLI Award is presented to a physician at any stage of practice who has demonstrated exceptional commitment to leadership and innovation at a time of significant changes in the practice of medicine.Dr. Feuerstein upbeat, proactive approach to patient care has inspired young physicians and residents, as well as, …

You Have 20 days to Submit a Targeted Review RequestIf you participated in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) in 2017, your MIPS final score and performance feedback are available on the Quality Payment Program website. The payment adjustment you will receive in 2019 is based on this final score. A positive, negative, or neutral payment adjustment will be applied to the Medicare paid amount for covered professional services furnished under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule in 2019.MIPS eligible clinicians or groups (along with their designated support staff or authorized third-party intermediary), including those who are subject to the APM …

On October 11th, the Connecticut State Medical Society (CSMS) is holding a dinner event to launch and showcase their newly developed Health Equity Data Collection Guide, “How Do I Ask? Asking Sensitive Questions in the Quest to Reduce Health Disparities.”All in health care interested in learning about how this toolkit can help them and their patients are invited to attend. The program, sponsored by the Coverys Foundation, will be held from 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the New Haven Lawn Club and will include a cocktail reception, dinner, release of the tool kit, and panel discussion. Cost is $10 in …

The Physicians Foundation, a nonprofit organization that seeks to advance the work of practicing physicians, recently released the findings of its 2018 survey of U.S. physicians. The new survey includes responses from almost 9,000 physicians across the country and underscores the overall impact of numerous factors driving physicians to reassess their careers.Dr. Gary Price, president of the Physicians Foundation and past president of the Connecticut State Medical Society, talked to us about what these findings mean.Q: Physician burnout has been an issue the Physicians Foundation has been monitoring for years in its biennial surveys. What’s changed in this year’s results? …

Seven state medical societies announced the creation of the Health Equity Network for Change (HENC) which is focused on improving the health status of medically underserved populations. HENC employs a new data source, health information exchange data, and powerful analytic tools provided by KAMMCO. Medical societies in each of these states have engaged KAMMCO to build physician-led exchanges: Kansas, Georgia, South Carolina, Connecticut, New Jersey, Missouri, and Louisiana.HENC chairman M. Natalie Achong, MD, MHL, FACOG shared, “Physicians across the nation are increasingly concerned about health disparities. To address this, HENC brings leading physicians together to examine trends in health disparity …

Providing monthly updates on the Physician Advocacy Institutes' (PAI) activities and Quality Payment Program (QPP) news for you and your practice.PAI's QPP Tip of the Month: Review Proposed Changes for QPP Year 3Last month, CMS released the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) Proposed Rule and with revisions to Year 3 of the Quality Payment Program (QPP summarized below):Definition of Eligible Clinicians (ECs) – CMS proposes expanding the definition to include physical therapists, occupational therapists, clinical social workers, and clinical psychologists. Modification of the low-volume threshold – CMS proposes adding a third criterion based on the number of covered professional services provided …

CSMS signed-on to letter to Administrator Verma regarding the E & M proposal in the 2019 proposed Physician Fee Schedule/Quality Payment Program rule. To reduce documentation, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) proposed to collapse coding and payment for office visits. As many of you know, the AMA rapidly convened a workgroup on E & M and plans to develop a CPT proposal by early November. The CPT editorial panel would then vote on the recommendations in February and the RUC then plans to develop revaluations by May.The AMA has spoken a number of times to senior administration officials …

The Connecticut State Medical Society (CSMS) presents the roster for the 2019 slate of General Officers of CSMS. This slate was nominated by the CSMS Nominating Committee, in accordance with the process set forth in the CSMS Bylaws.The CSMS Bylaws allow any CSMS member in good standing to also submit his/her name for nomination as a General Officer. If you wish to submit your name for nomination as a General Officer of CSMS, you must submit such nomination, in writing, and delivered either by US Mail, facsimile, or email to:Matthew C. Katz, Executive Vice President/CEO, CSMS127 Washington Avenue, East Building, …

CSMS is beginning the process to create an Association Health Plan to help reduce the cost of health insurance for you, your family and your employees.In order to get quotes from health insurance carriers, we must present a census of interested groups, including physicians, their families, and their employees. By combining TOGETHER, we can create a larger group and offer 2 – 3 different plans through our association. You do not need to be a member of CSMS to participate in the census, but you do need to be a member* to take part in the association plan.Here’s all you …

The Women’s Physician Section of CSMS (WPS) aims to increase the influence of women physicians in leadership roles within organized medicine and highlight women’s health issues.Now more than ever, we need a strong and robust WPS of CSMS to address topics of importance to women physicians and their patients, and bring those concerns to other representatives within organized medicine. Now is the time for you to get involved in the WPS!In order for the WPS to be an actively function section, the section needs strong leadership. At the outset, we are looking for individuals to fulfill three key leadership roles.The …

The 2018 Quality Payment Program Exception Applications for the Promoting Interoperability (PI) performance category and for Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances for the Merit-based Incentive System (MIPS) are now available on the Quality Payment Program website.Promoting Interoperatability Hardship ExceptionsIf you’re participating in MIPS during the 2018 performance year as an individual, group, or virtual group—or participating in a MIPS Alternative Payment Model (APM)—you can submit a Quality Payment Program Hardship Exception Application for the PI performance category, citing one of the following specified reasons for review and approval: MIPS-eligible clinicians in small practices (new for 2018) MIPS-eligible clinicians using decertified EHR …