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MMS News & Announcements
Down to the Wire for Cost Control Legislation; No Word Yet
With adjournment looming on July 31, state lawmakers continue to work on a cost control and payment reform bill, and are saying very little about its contents. Sen. Richard Moore told the State House News Service on Thursday that conferees were "finalizing" the bill and were dealing with only "minor points," but he didn't provide specifics.
Meanwhile, Gov. Patrick floated a new proposal to curb higher prices charged by large hospitals and doctor groups, by empowering a new state agency to conduct a "cost and market impact review" of health care providers. The Mass. Hospital Association said Friday that it does not support the proposal. Mass. Taxpayers Association President Michael Widmer called it "an open invitation for unaccountable bureaucrats to go on a witch hunt," and a Boston Globe editorial called the plan "worrisome on several fronts."
NEJM 200th "Dialogues in Medicine" Videos Now Available
What are the challenges in developing an HIV vaccine? What strategies do we need to solve maternal/fetal health issues today? How can breast cancer patients be diagnosed and treated more effectively? How can we ensure that advances in cardiology make the patient's life better? Prominent experts, including Paul Farmer, Tony Fauci, Joe Loscalzo and Eugene Braunwald, gathered in Boston on June 22 to discuss these questions and many more in a stimulating and inspiring day-long symposium with four panel discussions on HIV/AIDS, maternal and fetal health, breast cancer and cardiology. View the videos on the 200th anniversary site now.
Candidates Sought for Massachusetts AMA Delegation
The Committee on Nominations is currently considering candidates to fill delegate and alternate delegate positions on the Massachusetts AMA Delegation. Candidates should complete a nomination questionnaire for each position sought and submit it along with their resumes no later than 4:00 p.m. on Friday, August 17, 2012 to the Committee on Nominations, Massachusetts Medical Society, Department of Governance Meetings and Services, 860 Winter Street, Waltham, Massachusetts 02451-1411.
Incumbents, as well as new nominees, must complete the questionnaire. Interviews with the Committee on Nominations will be held on Wednesday, September 12, 2012, from approximately 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. All nominees should reserve this date. If you have questions, please contact Bonney Erskine at Society headquarters at (800) 322-2303, ext. 7208 or berskine@mms.org
August "Physician Focus" Examines Adult Vaccinations
The August episode of the Physician Focus TV program examines the topic of adult vaccinations. Guests for the show are Elisa Choi, M.D., a primary care physician and director of teaching at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, and Margaret Sandin, M.D., a primary care physician at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge. The host is Lynda Young, M.D., a pediatrician in Worcester and a past president of the Massachusetts Medical Society. Watch the program online starting August 1, or check the listings of your local public access television stations for airtimes. Physician Focus episodes are also available for download on iTunes.
Education Programs & Events
Live CME Activities
PubMed: How to Search Like a Librarian
Wednesday, September 5, 2012, 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Women's Leadership Forum: Effective Team Leadership
Monday, September 24, 2012, 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Management of Carotid Artery Stenosis and Acute Stroke: How to Provide the Best Treatments for Your Patients
Saturday, September 29, 2012, 7:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
CME Accreditation Orientation
Tuesday, October 16, 2012, 8:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.
Managing Workplace Conflict
Thursday, November 1, 2012, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and Friday, November 2, 2012, 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
The above activities have been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
Save the Date
Federal Funding Opportunities
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Harvard Medical School, Boston
Controversies in the Screening and Management of Breast Disease
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
MMS Headquarters, Waltham
Directors of Medical Education Conference
Thursday, November 8, 2012
MMS Headquarters, Waltham
Online CME Activities
* Also available in print. Call (800) 322-2303, ext. 7306.
For additional risk management online CME activities, visit www.massmed.org/cme.
TheAnswerPage.com
Earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ every week by reading targeted content relative to pain medicine, opioid prescribing, palliative care, risk management, hospital medicine, perioperative medicine, anesthesiology, and clinical statistics and completing either an Interactive Crossword Puzzle or Standardized For more information, contact us at MMSContinuingEducation@mms.org
This Week in Health Care
State HIV Testing Law Allowing for Verbal Consent Takes Effect
A new Massachusetts law took effect this week that removes the requirement for written informed consent prior to HIV testing, and now allows for verbal informed consent from the individual being tested. Read details on the MMS blog.
The MMS is interested in hearing from our members in a variety of settings about how the state's clinical advisory (.pdf) may change their procedures in their care setting. HIV confidentiality laws have historically had a wide variety of interpretations in Massachusetts, and the DPH's latest statement is likely to provoke significant discussion. We will compile questions about the advisory and the law and ask for clarification with the DPH if necessary. Send your questions or comments to wryder@mms.org.
MGH, BWH Will Provide Telemedicine Services
Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital will provide telemedicine services to Fortune 500 companies around the country through a deal between Partners HealthCare's Center for Connected Health and CHS Health Services Inc., a national workforce health management company.
Shriners, Connecticut Hospital Create Partnership
Connecticut Children's Medical Center and Shriners Hospital in Springfield are creating a partnership to expand pediatric care in New England and upstate New York.
UMass Medical To Study Health Disparities
The University of Massachusetts Medical School has been awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health to establish a Health Equity Interview Research Center for the study of health care disparities.
Partners Physician to Lead Commonwealth Fund
Michael Blumenthal, the Partners physician who was President Obama's health IT czar for two years, has been named president of The Commonwealth Fund, a prominent health research organization based in New York.
Millennium to Expand Presence in Cambridge
Millennium, a major biotech firm specializing in cancer drugs, is adding 230,000 square feet of office and lab space in Cambridge. The company already occupies five other buildings in the city. The combined campus could accommodate up to 2,000 employees when construction is completed in 2015. (Subscription may be required to access link.)
HIV Infection Is High Among Gay Black Men
A study of more than 1,500 black, gay men in Boston and five other U.S. cities showed that HIV infection rates remain high in this group, at a rate of 2.8 percent per year, one-and-a-half times the rate among white gay men.
CDC: More Than One-Third of Births Unintended
The CDC said this week than more than one-third of births in the U.S. come from unintended pregnancies, and that the number has remained steady from 1982. Related news: The U.S. birth rate has dropped to its lowest level in 25 years.
Doctors call for new U.S. painkiller labels to stop abuse
Doctors, researchers and public health officials asked the Food and Drug Administration to revise prescription labels for opioid painkillers in an effort to curb prescription drug abuse.
Survey: 1 in 3 Physicians To Leave Practice Within Decade
A national survey shows that one in three physicians plan to leave medicine within the next decade, citing low compensation and the burdens of health care reform as main reasons.
