With its more than 6,000 members continuing to care for older Americans affected by COVID-19 at the front-line of the nation’s pandemic response, the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) today stood in solidarity with the Council of Medical Special Societies (CMSS) in condemning President Trump’s claim that hospitals and physicians are inflating the number of COVID-19 deaths for their own financial gain.
Eleven provider and patient organizations have joined the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) to petition UnitedHealthcare (UHC) to cancel plans to implement a proposed copay accumulator initiative that would require physicians to share details about their patients’ usage of copay assistance programs. The initiative would prevent funds from assistance programs from being applied towards patients’ annual deductible and out-of-pocket maximums. The groups warn that this would jeopardize patient access to medically necessary therapies by increasing the financial burden of care and lead to an increase in treatment abandonment.
Gov. Doug Ducey has ignored more than 1700 letters from the medical community and the public strongly urging he protect Arizona patients by making his decision to “opt-out” of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ physician supervision requirement temporary.
AERA, APA, and NCME withdrew a copyright lawsuit against Public.Resource.Org regarding its online publication of the 1999 edition of Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, the joint work product of the three organizations. Read more
The Endocrine Society welcomed the European Commission’s new Chemical Strategy for Sustainability and its measures to protect the public from endocrine-disrupting chemicals. The communication was released Wednesday as part of the European Green Deal.
Chancellor Christina Drale provided her vision and priorities for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock during the University Assembly on Oct. 9. “The state of UA Little Rock in 2020 is good and getting better. We have a clear course ahead of us, and I look forward to making that journey with you. I would submit to you that the singular lasting value that we must hold dear is the transformational value of education,” Drale said.
The Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology (SOAP),the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia (SPA) the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) aim to clearly reassure pregnant women that the article “Association Between Epidural Analgesia During Labor and Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders in Offspring,” a new retrospective database study published in JAMA Pediatrics on October 12th, 2020 does not provide credible scientific evidence that epidurals for pain relief cause autism.
The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) partnered with 10 national nursing organizations to submit comments in response to the 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule proposed rule, calling for the removal of costly physician supervision and removal of practice barriers for Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) and other advanced practice registered nurses. More than 5,200 CRNAs, student registered nurse anesthetists, and their supporters responded, making up nearly 15 percent of those who submitted comments to the proposed rule.
The Federation of State Medical Boards’ Board of Directors released the following statement in response to reports from a number of state medical boards of complaints they are receiving about physicians and physician assistants failing to wear face coverings during patient care.
A recent survey from the AASM found that 63% of Americans support the elimination of seasonal time changes in favor of a national, fixed, year-round time. As the U.S. prepares to “fall back” on November 1, are seasonal time changes losing favor? Medical experts and legislators say yes.
In comments submitted to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) applauded the agency for continuing to recognize the value of rheumatology, by affirming changes to E/M reimbursement to better reflect the work and expertise needed to treat complex patient populations.
The letter, drafted and signed by a self-described group of bipartisan nurse leaders, states, "We believe we have a moral obligation to speak out about the Trump administration's actions that are undermining the health of individuals, families, communities, the nation, and our planet."
The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) has partnered with more than 50 national healthcare and mental health awareness organizations to support the introduction of the “Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act” (H.R. 8094) that supports behavioral health and well-being among healthcare professionals.
At a time when our nation is struggling to address systemic racism and the inequities that have long plagued communities of color, it is truly unsettling to see the recent Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping, which calls for restrictions on diversity training offered at federal agencies.
The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) has released a position statement calling for all healthcare decision-making to be anchored in the best scientific evidence available. The statement reinforces nursing professionals’ commitment to following the best evidence possible to provide care for patients and families.
Today, the leadership of the American Thoracic Society issued the following statement in response to the recent executive order by the Trump Administration:
On Sept. 22 the President signed an executive order titled “Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping”, which seeks to censor federal agency education efforts to address racial inequality in America.
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network announces publication of new NCCN Guidelines for Pediatric Hodgkin Lymphoma, one of the most curable forms of pediatric cancer. They synthesize the latest evidence and expert-consensus to make sure every child receives appropriate, but not excessive, treatment.
The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) applauds yesterday’s announcement of an Executive Order by the president to address surprise medical bills. ASA has been committed to ongoing efforts to protect patients while finding a fair solution to addressing these unexpected medical bills.
More than 80 college and university leaders have signed onto a statement co-authored by Presidents Biddy Martin of Amherst College and Michael S. Roth of Wesleyan University urging the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) to abandon its announced civil rights investigation into Princeton University.
Today, U.S. Senators Tim Scott (R-SC), Mark Warner (D-VA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced the PREVENT DIABETES Act. This legislation would increase access to the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) Expanded Model by allowing CDC-recognized virtual suppliers to participate in the program.
Today, on World Lung Day (WLD), the American Thoracic Society is united with members of the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS) and WLD partner organizations to advocate for respiratory health globally and call for more research to prevent, detect and treat respiratory infections.
The hallmark of a democratic society is support and encouragement of free speech. With that freedom as foundational—protecting generally welcome and unwelcome speech of the times—we can ever improve our imperfect, but laudable union. So important is this value that, in the United States, free speech is codified in the Constitution as the very First Amendment. A directly related hallmark of the academy is academic freedom, which has been recognized by courts as within the implied interests of the First Amendment.
Today, a group of health, environmental, and consumer organizations challenged the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) practice of not accounting for the cumulative health effect of chemicals in the diet when allowing new chemicals in food. Over 60 years ago, Congress passed a law requiring that FDA and industry do just that. Unfortunately, an Environmental Defense Fund investigation of nearly 900 safety determinations found that only one considered the requirement in a meaningful way.
In response to today’s announcement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish an advanced alternative payment model (APM) for radiation oncology practices starting January 1, 2021, the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) issued the following statement from Theodore L. DeWeese, MD, FASTRO, Chair of the ASTRO Board of Directors.
In the face of a chronic shortage of professionals who are qualified to perform clinical laboratory tests—including those for COVID-19—AACC released a position statement today calling on Congress to provide federal funding to expand clinical laboratory training programs. This will help to ensure that labs have the staffing they need to deliver timely, accurate test results, particularly during public health emergencies such as the current coronavirus pandemic.
The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) will hold its first virtual Advocates for Arthritis event on Tuesday, Sept. 15, where more than 120 rheumatologists, rheumatology health professionals, and patient advocates will meet with lawmakers via video to discuss the healthcare challenges they are facing in the midst of COVID-19.
According to the Global Hygiene Council's (GHC) public health experts, following a risk-based approach to home hygiene is essential to help curb the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.
Today, the CDC released data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey showing that in 2020, 20 percent of high school students and nearly 5 percent of middle school students used e-cigarettes. Most concerning, the data shows that among youth e-cigarette users, 38.9 percent of high school students and 20 percent of middle school students reported using e-cigarettes on 20 or more of the past 30 days; 22.5 percent of high school users and 9.4 percent of middle school users reported daily use.
NCCN Virtual Policy Summit features congressional staffers and representatives from CMS, COA, BIO, and others, discussing legislative and regulatory approaches for reducing health care costs.
Medicare has proposed drastic cuts to its payment rates for important health care services, threatening the practices of physician anesthesiologists who have been on the front lines of the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) opposes these detrimental payment reductions, and urges Congress to take action to override the budget neutrality requirements that are the cause for these cuts and thereby ensure physician anesthesiologists can continue to care for their patients while being more fairly compensated for their work.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics urges Congress to pass the bipartisan Medical Nutrition Therapy Act, which would be a crucial step in identifying and treating people with malnutrition.
The American Thoracic Society is alarmed by two federal agency policy actions that may significantly impact our nation’s COVID-19 response. This week, the FDA issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) for the use of convalescent plasma to treat COVID-19 disease. This action was taken despite a lack of adequate evidence demonstrating a clear benefit for most patients. As pulmonary and critical care clinicians and researchers who treat individuals with COVID-19, we are concerned that an EUA for convalescent plasma has the potential to put patients at risk.
Public health and safety would benefit from eliminating daylight saving time, according to a new position statement from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
The American Thoracic Society (ATS), European Respiratory Society (ERS) and International Society for Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE) are dedicated to improving health around the globe, with ATS and ERS achieving this goal by advancing research, patient care and public health in pulmonary diseases, while ISEE advances research on environment and health.
The Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC) has today released a statement relating to allegations of improper conduct by the University’s former Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Peter Rathjen AO, and the University’s handling of those allegations.
The Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP), the premier global, molecular diagnostics professional society, commends the decision by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to rescind the requirement for premarket review of laboratory developed testing procedures (LDPs) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
AACC welcomes a decision from the Department of Health and Human Services that the Food and Drug Administration does not have authority to regulate laboratory developed tests (LDTs) without formal notice-and-comment rulemaking.
Cornell researchers are leading a “living systematic review” on the risk of transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) through breast milk intake and breastfeeding.
A subcommittee of the American Thoracic Society Assembly in Sleep and Respiratory Neurobiology has released new clinical practice guidelines to help advise clinicians on the optimal management of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and chronic hypercapnia. Hypercapnia is the buildup of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream.
Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior President Pam Koch EdD, RD presented comments to federal officials on behalf of the Society regarding the Scientific Report of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee: Advisory Report to the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
A group of aquatic scientists and policy experts warns that the Navigable Waters Protection Rule recently adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers could profoundly degrade the nation’s water quality.
The recent resurgence of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has many states near or at bed and intensive care unit (ICU) capacity, and health care facilities’ ability to meet the ongoing needs of surgical patients may be stressed by new influxes of COVID-19 patients admitted to health care facilities. To ensure health care organizations, physicians, and nurses remain prepared to meet these demands to care for patients who undergo recommended essential operations, the American College of Surgeons (ACS), American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) and American Hospital Association (AHA) have developed a Joint Statement: Roadmap for Maintaining Essential Surgery During COVID-19 Pandemic. This joint statement provides a list of principles and considerations to guide physicians, nurses, and hospitals and health systems as they provide essential care to their patients and communities. This joint statement builds on the Joint Statement:
– Today in view of rising global tensions, bold new recommendations were issued by the National Commission for Grid Resilience (NCGR) to secure and build a more resilient grid in the United States, the world's greatest consumer of electricity.
American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) President Joseph A. Bosco III, MD, FAAOS, issued the following statement in response to the newly released Calendar Year (CY) 2021 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) proposed rule.
ACSM published a call to action statement addressing COVID-19 and safely returning to sports and exercise. Authored by ACSM subject matter experts, the statement highlights the current science around COVID-19 and provides 12 action steps to consider. “COVID-19: Considerations for Sports and Physical Activity” is ACSM’s first call to action statement and published in the August issue of Current Sports Medicine Reports.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics thanks U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and Gary Peters (Mich.) for their commitment to America’s health and their introduction of the Medical Nutrition Therapy Act. This bicameral, bipartisan legislation would provide coverage for Medicare beneficiaries to obtain treatment from registered dietitian nutritionists and other qualified nutrition experts for many common and costly chronic diseases.
To provide high-quality, value-based healthcare for millions of patients living in the nation’s rural communities, the White House issued an executive order on Aug. 3 that calls on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to report on ways to eliminate regulatory burdens. The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) is encouraged by the order which, if considered, could increase access to quality care for patients by removing costly supervision requirements of nurse anesthetists.
Legal marijuana is one of America’s fastest-growing industries, yet little scientific research exists on the unique workplace and health risks faced by cannabis workers. A special issue of the journal Annals of Work Exposures and Health explores worker safety in cannabis industry.
American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) President Joseph A. Bosco III, MD, FAAOS, issued the following statement in response to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) newly released Calendar Year (CY) 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rule, which proposes to reduce all orthopaedic surgical services by approximately 5%.
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