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Submit 2020 Data Now to Avoid Medicare Pay Cut - 02/12/2021

If you participated in Medicare’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) under the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), the deadline to submit all data through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) portal has been extended one day to April 1. The deadline had been March 31.

AMA Reiterates Cannabis Remains a “Serious Public Health Concern” - 11/19/2020

As more states relax marijuana use and possession laws, delegates at the American Medical Association’s Special Meeting voted Tuesday to clarify AMA policy to say that the association “believes that cannabis is a dangerous drug and as such is a serious public health concern.”

AMA Advocates for 24/7 Prior Authorization Processing - 11/19/2020

AMA delegates passed new policy on Tuesday that advocates for insurers and benefit managers who require prior authorization to have staff available to process  those approvals 24 hours a day, year-round, “including holidays and weekends.”

Delegates Support Expanding Telemedicine, Financial Relief Programs - 11/19/2020

As telemedicine expands because of the COVID-19 pandemic, physicians at the American Medical Association’s Special Meeting of the House of Delegates approved a measure on Tuesday that called for telemedicine’s use to continue beyond the national public health emergency.

AMA Policy Calls on Medicine to Oppose Racism, Recognize It as a Public Health Threat - 11/18/2020

At a Special Meeting of the American Medical Association House of Delegates, the nation’s physicians confronted racism nationwide by adopting several policies that recognize racism as a public health threat.

AMA Adopts Standards for “Public Option” - 11/18/2020

Delegates at the virtual Special Meeting of the American Medical Association passed new policy allowing AMA to advocate that any so-called “public option” proposal to expand health insurance coverage to the nation’s uninsured and underinsured must adhere to a set of standards that include protections for patients and physicians.

AMA Pushes to End National Clinical Skills Exams for U.S. Medical Students - 11/18/2020

American Medical Association (AMA) delegates called on AMA to urge the speedy end to the clinical skills part of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 2 and Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX) Level 2 for U.S. medical students.

Physicians’ Hard Work Should Not Be Undone by Politics, AMA President Tells Delegates - 11/16/2020

Physicians nationwide will continue to tackle COVID-19’s unique and unforeseen challenges, American Medical Association President Susan R. Bailey, MD, said in opening remarks to the AMA House of Delegates as the November Special Meeting  kicked off Friday evening.

CMS Increases Advanced APM Thresholds for 2021 - 11/13/2020

If you participated in Medicare’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) this year as a Qualifying Alternative Payment Model Participant (QP), you’ll need to keep an eye on your status for 2021.

Texas Residents and Students Win AMA Leadership Posts - 11/10/2020

Several Texas residents and students nabbed American Medical Association leadership positions this past weekend during the AMA’s special interim meeting, which is being held virtually this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Texans Take New AMA Leadership Spots - 06/08/2020

Although Susan Rudd Bailey, MD’s installation as the new American Medical Association president Sunday earned most of the attention, four other Texas physicians earned leadership positions during the virtual 2020 annual meeting of the AMA House of Delegates.

Sue Bailey, MD, Takes Office as AMA President; “Let Doctors Be Doctors” - 06/08/2020

Susan Rudd Bailey, MD, is American physicians’ new leader in the battles against COVID-19 and outside interference in patient care. The Fort Worth allergist took the oath of office as president of the American Medical Association on Sunday, becoming the sixth Texas physician to lead the organization.

CMS Postpones 2019 MIPS Reporting Deadline to April 30 - 03/23/2020

With a key deadline for clinicians in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System approaching fast amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is giving those clinicians a month of extra time to submit their data.

TPHC Praises Bill to Make State College Campuses and Offices Tobacco-Free - 02/20/2020

Statement by Eduardo Sanchez, MD, chair of the Texas Public Health Coalition and former Texas commissioner of health, in support of legislation filed to make Texas state college campuses and state agencies tobacco-free.

John Zerwas, MD, Honored for Service as Texas Lawmaker - 02/12/2020

The American Medical Association on Tuesday awarded former Texas State Rep. John Zerwas, MD, its Dr. Nathan Award for Outstanding Government Service.

AMA House Punts on Texas Plan to Fix QPP - 11/20/2019

A decision on whether the American Medical Association (AMA) will join the Texas Medical Association’s call for major changes to Medicare’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) will have to wait a few more months, the AMA House of Delegates decided at its annual meeting in Chicago last week. The QPP overhaul was just one of 11 resolutions the Texas delegation to the AMA took to the five-day meeting. Most of the other 10 received a very warm welcome.

AMA House Rejects MIPS Plan - 11/20/2019

Led by the Texas delegation, the American Medical Association House of Delegates on Tuesday rejected as inadequate a plan to improve Medicare’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) and its highly-flawed Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) track.

Texas Students and Residents Nab AMA Posts - 11/18/2019

Ten residents and medical students from Texas won elections over the weekend at the 2019 interim meeting of the American Medical Association in San Diego.

File Your MIPS Targeted Review Request by Sept. 30 - 09/18/2019

Physicians have two weeks to file a targeted review request to appeal errors in their 2018 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) performance feedback and 2020 Medicare payment adjustment under the Quality Payment Program (QPP).

Improve Your Health Systems Science Curriculum - 08/23/2019

Do you have a significant responsibility for implementing a curriculum related to topics such as health care quality, population health, or team-based care at your institution? If so, you might benefit from the American Medical Association’s Health Systems Science Scholars Program.

Yes, You Do Have to Comply With a MIPS Audit Request - 08/14/2019

TMA finally received clarification from CMS: If you receive an Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) audit request for the 2017 and/or 2018 performance years, compliance is indeed mandatory, and there are possible punishments for noncompliance.

Retiring the R-Word: The Right Thing to Do - 07/03/2019

The AMA House of Delegates last month adopted policy that would put the first three phrases on the verboten list for physicians. Kudos to the delegates for recognizing that words, especially in the mouths and pens of powerful people like physicians, really do matter.

TMA to Congress: Undo Payment Freeze, Help Physicians With MACRA - 06/25/2019

Physicians participating in the Quality Payment Program’s Merit-Based Incentive Payment System and alternative payment models need help from Congress to succeed, and lawmakers need to undo an upcoming freeze on Medicare payments. That’s what the American Medical Association, the Texas Medical Association, and dozens of other medical societies told House of Representatives and Senate leaders in both parties in a letter sent last week.

Be On the Lookout for MIPS Audit Request - 06/25/2019

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has contracted with Guidehouse, a nationwide consulting firm, to audit physicians who participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Program, which is under the Quality Payment Program. If you submitted MIPS data for 2017 and/or 2018, you could receive a request for information via email or certified letter from Guidehouse.

Houston Physician Is AMA Board Chair-To-Be - 06/17/2019

In 2020, Texas physicians will hold the largest reins of power at the American Medical Association. The AMA Board of Trustees last week chose Russell W.H. Kridel, MD, a facial plastic surgeon from Houston, as its new chair-elect. Dr. Kridel has been a board member since 2014 and served as secretary of the board last year. He will become chair following the AMA’s annual meeting in June 2020.