Today’s Top Story
AAOS and other organizations ask Congress to reconsider Stage 3 of Meaningful Use.
In letters sent to leaders in both houses of the U.S. Congress, the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) and 110 other medical organizations have asked legislators to reconsider plans to implement Stage 3 of the Meaningful Use program. “While the overall goal established by Congress in the HITECH Act, namely to promote widespread adoption of electronic health records by physicians and hospitals, has largely been achieved,” the societies state, “the Stage 3 requirements are inconsistent with the goal of promoting better coordinated and high quality patient care.” The writers argue that Stage 2 implementation has “largely been a failure, with only 12 percent of physicians successfully participating and little improvement in data exchange across care settings.” The societies argue that future success of the Meaningful Use program will require an increased focus on interoperability and innovation. Read more…
Read the letter sent to the U.S. House of Representatives (PDF)…

Other News

Physicians to see 0.3 percent negative pay adjustment under Medicare next year.
An article in Medscape states that physicians will see a 0.3 percent reduction in reimbursement under Medicare during 2016, despite a 0.5 percent increase called for under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). The writer notes that although MACRA increased the conversion factor by 0.5 percent, a budget neutrality adjustment requires a 0.02 percent decrease in Medicare spending, while a 0.77 percent decrease in reimbursement was introduced because CMS failed to meet a cost-saving target. Read more…

CMS extends deadline for PQRS informal review process.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has extended the 2014 informal review period for providers who believe they have been incorrectly assessed the 2016 Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) negative payment adjustment. Providers have until 11:59 p.m. ET on Nov. 23, 2015, to submit an informal review requesting that CMS investigate incentive eligibility and/or payment adjustment determination. The agency states that informal review requestors will be contacted via email of a final decision by CMS within 90 days of the original request, and that all decisions will be final. Informal review requests must be submitted electronically via the Quality Reporting Communication Support Page. Read more (PDF)…
Learn more about the PQRS…
Submit a request for an informal review…

Study: Use of prescription drugs by U.S. adults rose significantly between 1999 and 2012.
A study published in the Nov. 3 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association finds a significant increase in overall use of prescription drugs among adults in the United States between 1999-2000 and 2011-2012. The researchers reviewed data from seven cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, covering 37,959 noninstitutionalized adults. They found that during 1999-2000, an estimated 51 percent of adults reported use of any prescription drugs, compared to 59 percent during 2011-2012. Further, the prevalence of polypharmacy (use of 5 or more prescription drugs) increased from an estimated 8.2 percent in 1999-2000 to 15 percent in 2011-2012. Read more…
Read the abstract…

Study: Sarcopenia meeting IWGS definition may predict increased likelihood of falls and fractures.
Findings from a study conducted in the United Kingdom and published in the November issue of the journal Calcified Tissue International suggest that the presence of sarcopenia as defined by the International Working Group on Sarcopenia (IWGS) may be associated with increased risk of falls and fractures. The research team reviewed data on participants in the Hertfordshire Cohort Study and found that the prevalence of sarcopenia in that cohort was 3.3 percent using diagnostic standards set by the European Working Group for Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP), 2.0 percent using standards from the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health Sarcopenia Project, and 8.3 percent based on standards proposed by IWGS. They found that patients with sarcopenia as defined by IWGS reported significantly higher falls in the previous year and prevalent fractures, associations not seen when the EWGSOP definition was applied. Read more…

CDC issues challenge to determine best practices for preventing healthcare-associated VTE.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a challenge designed to find and recognize healthcare organizations that have implemented successful strategies to prevent healthcare-associated venous thromboembolism (HA-VTE). The HA-VTE Prevention Challenge encourages both U.S. and international healthcare systems to submit evidence of demonstrated successful use of prevention strategies and interventions. A judging panel from CDC, the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and others will evaluate submissions. Winners will be recognized as National HA-VTE Prevention Champions. Strategies from HA-VTE Prevention Champions will be highlighted as best practices in VTE prevention efforts nationwide. Submissions will be accepted from Nov. 2, 2015, until Jan. 10, 2016, with winners announced in March 2016. Read more…
Learn more about the HA-VTE Prevention Challenge…

AAOS Nominating Committee recommends 2016 slate.
On Nov. 4, 2015, the AAOS Nominating Committee released its recommended slate of nominees. The release was timed to correspond to bylaw amendments adopted by the AAOS fellowship after the 2010 Annual Meeting. Chaired by John R. Tongue, MD, the 2016 Nominating Committee included Timothy J. Bray, MD; Lawrence D. Dorr, MD; Thomas A. Einhorn, MD; John T. Gill, MD; Richard F. Kyle, MD; and Thomas P. Sculco, MD. After an expansive search process, the development of Plans for Active Management of conflicts of interest and extensive discussion, the 2016 Nominating Committee recommended the following individuals to serve in the specified AAOS leadership positions:

  • Second Vice President: David A. Halsey, MD
  • Treasurer: M. Bradford Henley, MD, MBA
  • Member-at-Large (age 45 or older): Brian J. Galinat, MD, MBA
  • Member-at-Large (younger than age 45): Robert H. Brophy, MD
  • National Membership Committee representative: Michael Tanzer, MD
  • Nominees to ABOS:
    • Frederick M. Azar, MD
    • Valerae O. Lewis, MD
    • Raj D. Rao, MD
    • Robert D. Zura, MD

The AAOS fellowship will have the opportunity to vote on the nominees during the business meeting of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons on Thursday, March 3, 2016, during the 2016 AAOS Annual Meeting in Orlando, Fla.

Call for abstracts: AAOS/ORS Tackling Joint Disease by Understanding Crosstalk between Cartilage and Bone Research symposium.
Dec. 1, 2015, is the last day to submit abstracts for the AAOS/Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) Tackling Joint Disease by Understanding Crosstalk between Cartilage and Bone Research Symposium. AAOS and ORS seek abstracts in the areas of bone and cartilage biology, biomechanics, mechanobiology, the microbiome, exosomes, genomics and other relevant areas as they relate to crosstalk between bone and cartilage. Abstracts should concisely communicate the significance, hypothesis, methods, results, and conclusions of the study. In addition, 15 Young Investigator travel awards are available for abstracts of high quality research. The symposium will be held April 28-30, 2016, in Rosemont, Ill. For more information, contact Erin Ransford, AAOS manager, research advocacy, at: ransford@aaos.org
Learn more about the symposium…