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This Thursday, July 15, Re-opening of California, and what it means for Oncologists MOASC News/Affiliate Association News- ANCO News
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Anthem Blue Cross Medicare Advantage proposes dose reduction California News
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Open Payments legislation passed in the state Assembly California News
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HHS rules to protect consumers from Surprise Medical Bills National News
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July 15-16, Quality Training Program (QTP) Summer 2021 Affiliate Association News- ASCO News
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This Thursday, July 15, 12:00pm-1:00pm! MOASC President, Ashkan Lashkari, MD, will join ANCO President, Thach-Giao Truong, MD, on ANCO Connections. The program topic is: Connecting with MOASC: Re-opening of California, and what it means for Oncologists.
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MOASC Programs - Save the Dates - All Times are Pacific
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July 28, Clinical Peer to Peer Discussion on Lung Cancer, 5:30pm – 7:00pm. MOASC Secretary, Joshua Mansour, M.D., City of Hope will host moderator Hatim Husain, M.D., UCSD in a panel discussion of case presentations and discussion of various treatment options with; Munveer Bhangoo, M.D., Scripps MD Anderson Cancer Center; Misaqh Karimi, M.D., City of Hope; Jonathan Goldman, M.D., UCLA Hematology & Oncology.
The purpose of this meeting is multifaceted; to provide ongoing clinical education through community outreach, discuss new treatment options, side effect management and clinical trials. This will be a great opportunity to learn from key opinion leaders and network with colleagues.
Benefits of Attending:
Submit questions and cases for discussion with KOL’s in the field;
Hear the latest clinical trial data and apply it to your patients; and
Consider real-world scenarios and how to mitigate barriers to treatment.
Target Audience:
This educational activity is directed toward medical oncologists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses and other professionals with an interest in hematology/oncology.
Registration is required. This event is complementary
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July 29-31, Physicians Education Resource (PER) cordially invites all MOASC members to their 22nd Annual International Lung Cancer Congress (ILC), in Huntington Beach. The ILC has extended a discounted registration code for all MOASC members.
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August 11, 5:30-6:30 PDT, MOASC will host, a live Zoom meeting on Innovative Immunotherapy in Advanced Basal Cell Carcinoma. Evolving Science, Key Clinical Evidence, and Implications for Multidisciplinary Management. Karl D. Lewis, MD University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado Cancer Center, will chair & moderate the CME/MOC/NCPD/CPE presentation and discussions.
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August 14, MOASC presents their virtual Spotlight On Clinical Oncology, 8am – 12pm. Topics to be discussed are on breast cancer, GU cancers, upper GI and lower GI cancers, lung cancer and melanoma/sarcoma. Renowned speakers from UCI, UCSD, Cedars-Sinai and more are being lined up to present a most valuable program for you.
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August 25th at 12:30pm, MOASC LunchTime Series presents a zoom meeting Bradley Behrendt, Financial Consultant for the Tax & Financial, on California law requirements that force business with more than 5 employees to provide a qualified health plan to their employees.
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Effective for dates of service on or after July 1, 2021, physicians and practitioners providing care to Anthem Blue Cross (Anthem) Medicare Advantage plan members will be asked, in selective circumstances, whether or not they will accept a dose reduction to the nearest whole vial, at the initial review point in the prior authorization process. Since this program is voluntary, the decision made regarding dose reduction will not affect the final decision on the prior authorization. The dose reduction questions will appear only if the originally requested dose is within 10% of the nearest whole vial. Reviews for these oncology drugs will continue to be administered by the reviewing company, either AIM Specialty Health®* or IngenioRx.*. Besides California, other states affected by this program change are Colorado, Kentucky, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Virginia.
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AB-1278, Open Payments legislation was passed in the state Assembly and now must pass the state Senate before becoming law. If passed, physicians in California would be required, on an annual basis, to disclose any payments or other transfers of value received from pharmaceutical and device companies in writing to each patient prior to prescribing any drugs or devices manufactured or distributed by the company. Physicians would also be required to post an open payments database notice in each location where the licensee practices in a conspicuous place, likely to be seen by all patients who enter the office and post the same notice on its website.
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SB 395, is moving through the legislative process. The bill needs your help to pass! Please send a message of support to your Assembly Member. If passed, effective July 1, 2022, a purchaser of electronic cigarettes will be required to pay a tax of 12.5% of the gross receipts from the sale of electronic cigarettes in this state, creating parity between the tax rate of e-cigarette products and traditional tobacco products. The legislation is critically important because it seeks to curtail the growing epidemic of vaping by youth and young adults and will fund important prevention programs and the Proposition 56 Medi-Cal Physicians and Dentists Loan Repayment Act, and to the Health Careers Opportunity Grant Program Fund created by this bill.
The bill would require the foundation to provide grants to specified types of public postsecondary education institutions, including schools of medicine, to be used only for specified purposes, including identifying, recruiting, and selecting underrepresented students from disadvantaged backgrounds to access education and training programs in a health profession.
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Deadline to apply is August 3, 2021! CMA is collaborating with Aledade Inc. to help independent physicians succeed in value-based care, ensuring practices and health centers are able to thrive while delivering the best possible patient care. As the top-rated, physician-led ACO in the country, Aledade’s proven process helps practices and community health centers quickly improve financial performance and get more from the data and technologies they have.
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Noridian’s Medicare Part A and B Provider Outreach and Education (POE) team is providing their July 2021 latest news and updates.
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July 14, 2021 Prior Authorization for Certain Hospital Outpatient Department (OPD) Services webinar is intended for Medicare Part A/B Providers and will include: • Overview • Authorization Process • Submitting Prior Authorization Request (PAR) • Services Requiring Prior Authorization • Advance Beneficiary Notice of Noncoverage (ABN) • Resources.
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July 22, 2021 Modifier 59, National Correct Coding Initiative and Medically Unlikely Edits webinar includes: National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI), Modifier 59, Procedure to Procedure (PTP) CCI Edits, Medically Unlikely Edits (MUEs), CCI Examples, Resources.
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July 29, 2021 Noridian Medicare Portal (NMP) Functionality webinar includes: NMP Functionality for Eligibility and MBI Lookup Tool, Claim Status, Financial, Appeals Status and Submission, Remittance Advices, Provider Enrollment, Message Center.
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An updated Patient Assistance Programs (PAP) User Guide is now available. |
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HHS Announces Rule to Protect Consumers from Surprise Medical Bills
The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and Treasury, and the Office of Personnel Management, issued "Requirements Related to Surprise Billing; Part I," an interim final rule that will restrict excessive out of pocket costs to consumers from surprise billing and balance billing. Surprise billing happens when people unknowingly get care from providers that are outside of their health plan's network and can happen for both emergency and non-emergency care. Balance billing, when a provider charges a patient the remainder of what their insurance does not pay, is currently prohibited in both Medicare and Medicaid. This rule will extend similar protections to Americans insured through employer-sponsored and commercial health plans, and will take effect for plan years beginning after January 1, 2022
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Affiliate Association News |
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ANCO News
This Thursday, July 15 at 12:15, you’re invited to the next ANCO Connections Virtual Roundtable & Networking series. Connect with Thach-Glao Truong, MD, ANCO President and Ashkan Lashkari, MD, MOASC President, as they discuss California’s Reopening: What It Means for Oncologists, What You Need to Know for Your Practice. Last month, California lifted most capacity and distancing restrictions. What does that mean for those in the cancer care community? Hear about: Current California Department of Health guidelines and recommendations; The latest updates to the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards for your staff; What you should know about case rates, test positivity rates and vaccine metrics and reopening; Special safety considerations for your patients with cancer; Ways that COVID-19 might continue to change cancer care delivery. For optimal interaction, attendance is limited to the first 20 participants who register for this free program, so register TODAY!
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September 11, ANCO's Virtual Hematologic Malignancies Updates (part II of III) will be presented. Please register online no later than Thursday, September 9th
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ASH News
Make your hotel reservation by July 21, before registration opens to all ASH members for the 63rd ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition being held on December 11-14, 2021 virtually and at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA. MOASC members can register, by signing in with their ASH username (moasc@moasc.org) and password. If you have forgotten your password, you may reset it using the “Forgot Password?” link on the sign-in page. Register early and book one of the available hotels close to the convention center!
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ASCO News
ASCO’s 1st meeting of their Quality Training Program (QTP) Summer 2021 course will be virtual this Thursday & Friday, July 15-16. Meeting 2 will also be virtual on September 13-14, 2021. Meeting 3 will be a hybrid meeting (virtual & in-person) on December 10.
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As numerous approvals across cancer settings and emerging approaches are explored in clinical research, new findings presented at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in June continue to encourage investigators. Here is a link to a Cancer Immunotherapy Month article you will find of interest.
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Last week, COA joined a coalition of advocacy groups in filing an amicus brief supporting North Dakota’s efforts to regulate PBMs. At issue in this appeal is whether a North Dakota statute that, prohibits PBMs from assessing post point-of-sale fees such as pharmacy DIR fees, GER/BER, etc., is preempted by ERISA and the Medicare statute. Following the SCOTUS’s unanimous decision in Arkansas vs. Rutledge last December, this case represents the “next frontier” in the ongoing war that PCMA has waged against States seeking to enact legislation that seeks to eliminate DIR fees.
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If you want a law or regulation to change, you’ve got to make your voice heard. Saying it loud and proud is one of the themes of the free, virtual 2021 COA Patient Advocacy Network (CPAN) Advocacy Summit on Wednesday, July 21. The power to create a better cancer care system rests with the physicians, patients, survivors, and advocates of community oncology. You'll hear from advocacy, legal, clinical, and communications experts who will help you and your patients hone your advocacy skills.
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Moffitt Cancer Center News
Moffitt Cancer Center has released a short video for patients explaining white bagging. Feel free to share with your patients.
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NCCN News
Central Nervous System Cancers, Version 1.2021 updates, have been published by the NCCN.
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The FDA published, Evaluating Cancer Drugs in patient with Central nervous System Metastasis; Guidance for Industry, in the July 2, 2021, Federal Register.
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Astellas Pharma US, Inc. announced their FDA approval on enfortumab vedotin-ejfv, a Nectin-4-directed antibody and microtubule inhibitor conjugate, for adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who: have previously received a programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) or programmed death-ligand (PD-L1) inhibitor and platinum-containing chemotherapy, or are ineligible for cisplatin-containing chemotherapy and have previously received one or more prior lines of therapy.
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Foundation Medicine, Inc. announced approval from the FDA for FoundationOne®CDx to be used as a companion diagnostic for ALUNBRIG® (brigatinib), which is currently FDA-approved for the treatment of adult patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) as detected by an FDA-approved test. FoundationOne CDx, the only FDA-approved tissue-based comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) test, is now able to detect ALK+ mNSCLC and identify patients who may be appropriate for treatment with ALUNBRIG which is approved as a first-line or later-line therapy.
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CURE® | Targeted Oncology™ have confirmed another virtual roundtable for the southern California region. B-Cell Lymphoma: New Approaches for Relapsed/Refractory DLBCL will be moderated by Dr. Elizabeth Budde (City of Hope) on Wednesday, July 14th at 7:00-8:30pmPDT. Dr. Budde, a thought leader in the field, will discuss pathology report findings, patient diagnostic workup, the most likely diagnosis and potential treatment options for a few case studies. This program is open to, and intended for, oncologists treating B-Cell Lymphoma.The audience is encouraged to ask questions and discuss as the cases are presented. Attendees are paid $400 of compensation by Healthcare Research Analytics® for their attendance, participation & completion of the post-event HRA survey.
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The FDA issued its very first Notice of Noncompliance for failure to submit required results clinical trial data to ClinicalTrials.gov. The Notice, sent to Acceleron Pharma, Inc., relates to the company’s study, “A Phase 2 Randomized, Double-Blind Study of Dalantercept and Axitinib Compared to Placebo and Axitinib in Patients with Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma,” which was completed in June 2017. As of the date of the citation Acceleron had still not submitted the final results data that were due one year after the primary completion date.
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The Medical Oncology Association of Southern California (MOASC) is a leading oncology society that advances and protects the ability of cancer patients to obtain, and the ability of the oncology physicians to provide, optimal cancer care. The material contained in the California Oncology Weekly is intended as general information for MOASC members. Because diagnostic, treatment, contracting, coding, and billing decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis, any such information contained in the California Oncology Weekly may not apply in any given situation. Members are encouraged to contact their own consultants or advisors to obtain specific advice on matters relating to contracting, coding, and billing. The information contained in California Oncology Weekly should not be used as a substitute for such advice. This publication provides a summary of regulations affecting oncology and its business practices. Reading this newsletter does not substitute for understanding regulations and verifying the validity of every claim. This information is time-sensitive and is subject to change. MOASC accepts no liability for any statements or articles herein. CPT codes are owned and trademarked by the American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.
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