MSNJ Member COVID-19 Update
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A Message from MSNJ President, Marc J. Levine, MD
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Dear Colleagues:
This Sunday, June 14, 2020 at 2 PM a special virtual meeting of the House of Delegates will take place. The main purpose of this meeting will be to transition the Executive Leadership of the Medical Society of New Jersey. This yearly event has taken place since 1766 and Dr. Philip Kline will be inducted as the 228
th
President of MSNJ. Dr. Kline brings an exceptional skill set that I know will further advance our organization.
This past year has clearly shown the effectiveness of MSNJ in addressing critical needs of physicians and patients in New Jersey. MSNJ has been at the forefront of addressing the COVID Crisis by contributing in in so many ways in shaping policy that has been instituted; and is now helping to create policy to open up healthcare and the general economy in New Jersey. MSNJ has been an invited member of multiple committees and forums while independently seeking state and federal assistance by engaging legislators.
Personally, I am so very proud of our profession as we continue to put patients first while protecting each other and the practices that provide healthcare to New Jersey.
I welcome each and every physician in New Jersey to join The Medical Society of New Jersey. Regardless of your employment status, whether it be private practice, hospital based or large employer; MSNJ is critical for your future. Now is the time to join.
Please make time this Sunday to join MSNJ’s virtual meeting and welcome in our new leadership team.
It has truly been my honor and privilege to steward this great organization over the past year. I thank each and every one of you for your support and dedication.
Be Well, Be Safe and Be Proud
Respectfully,
Marc J. Levine, MD
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COVID-19 Updates & Resources
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KN95 Masks Available for Physician Practices
MSNJ has been sourcing KN95 masks and can make them available to members to purchase.
If you have interest in obtaining KN95 masks, please reply with your contact information
here
.
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CMS Scope of Practice Sign-on Letter
MSNJ joined the AMA and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in a letter voicing concerns with a proposed change to Medicare scope of practice requirements in the FY 2021 Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility (IRF) Prospective Payment System (PPS) proposed rule. Specifically, CMS proposes to allow non-physician practitioners to perform the services and documentation requirements currently required to be completed by rehabilitation physicians, including medical supervision, development of patient plans of care, and leadership of interdisciplinary team meetings. Read the
letter
.
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FDA Approves First Next Generation Sequence Test for Diagnosing COVID-19
The FDA issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) to Illumina, Inc. authorizing the first COVID-19 diagnostic test that uses next generation sequence technology. Next generation sequencing allows the test to generate information about the genomic sequence of the virus present in a sample, which can be also used for research purposes.
Read more
.
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CMS released
FAQs
on COVID-19 flexibilities for Non Long-Term Care Facilities and Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICFs/IIDs).
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REMINDER:
Naloxone Prescribing by Healthcare Professionals
Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, NJ CARES, and the Division of Consumer Affairs recently announced that NJ physicians and other healthcare professionals who prescribe opioids for the management of chronic pain, must also prescribe the opioid antidote, naloxone, to certain at-risk patients during the COVID-19 crisis. In particular, it is required to prescribe the antidote if the patient has one or more prescriptions totaling 90 morphine milligram equivalents or more per day, or is concurrently obtaining an opioid and a benzodiazepine; and document the action taken within the patient record. Read the
Administrative Order
.
Read more
.
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Register Now: Lunch & Learn Webinar Series - COVID-19 Conversations: Legal Issues for NJ’s Healthcare Community
Presented by Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis LLP in collaboration with the Medical Society of New Jersey, New Jersey Hospital Association, and the New Jersey Healthcare Financial Management Association.
Part 1: Delivering Healthcare in a COVID-19 World: What Providers Should Know to Adjust and Adapt to the Pandemic
June 17 from 12:00pm-1:00pm
With predictions of a likely second surge in the coming months, we will cover a variety of topics to help providers adapt their businesses and position themselves for the “new normal.”
Part 2: The Impact of COVID-19 on Healthcare Industry Employers and Next Steps
June 24 from 12:00pm-1:00pm
A timely review of employment law issues related to compliance and operations—and our thoughts about what healthcare industry employers can expect to see going forward.
Part 3: Insurance Coverage Issues and Defending Your Rights in the Age of COVID-19
July 1 from 12:00pm-1:00pm
A review of claims and coverage, both as an insured claiming against policies written before COVID-19, and as the holder of rights under health insurance policies issued to patients with pandemic-related healthcare expenses.
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Counterfeit Masks Reporting Portal
MSNJ is trying to help get PPE distributed to physician practices throughout NJ. We would like to hear from you if you have purchased fraudulent masks and if you have paid more for masks since prior to COVID-19. Report
here
.
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MSNJ COVID-19 Impact Survey
MSNJ is conducting a survey to determine the impact of COVID-19 on physician practices. Answer survey questions regarding the impact of COVID-19 on staff reductions, the need for PPE, education, and telemedicine issues so it can be brought up with legislators and government administrators and used to help us get medical practices reopened.
Please note: this survey was previously fielded by Rockpointe in partnership with MSNJ. If you have already responded to this survey, there is no need to respond again.
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HHS Provider Payments Survey
MSNJ would like to hear about your overall experience with the HHS provider portal to receive payments. Please take our short
survey
.
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MSNJ Medical Student Section Update - COVID-19
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The American Red Cross, which collects almost 40 percent of the blood donations in the country, warns of a blood shortage. As a result of the COVID pandemic which resulted in fewer people donating blood, The Red Cross reports that it’s inventories have been cut by half. With hospitals resuming elective surgeries, the increased demand is not able to be met by the staggering decease in supply. As a result, the Red Cross has only been able to meet 75% of the blood donation requests for hospitals in the country. Normally, the Red Cross usually has enough blood to meet the nation’s need for five days but now has less than two day’s worth.
The blood and plasma initiative team from the New Jersey Medical Student Coalition (NJMSC) has partnered with the Medical Society of New Jersey (MSNJ) and Hamilton YMCA to help meet the demand.
This drive will be held on Wednesday, July 1, 2020 8am – 1pm at the Hamilton YMCA
. Those interested can use our
flyer
to make an appointment.
The NJMSC has recently partnered with RJWMS blood bank and has been aggressively promoting blood donations in central jersey. The coalition plans to continue their partnerships, and is currently setting up blood donation drives in South Jersey for the remainder of the summer.
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Please continue to support the NJ COVID-19 Medical Student Coalition.
Donate and get involved! More information on the Coalition is listed below below.
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Neil Jain (left), Immediate-Past Chair of the MSNJ Medical Student Section (MSS), started a Medical Student Coalition to collect medical supplies such as N95/99 masks, face shields, sterile gloves, latex gloves, protective eye wear, as well as other necessary supplies for NJ hospitals state wide. They have partnered with MSNJ and MSNJ-MSS on this initiative. We applaud them on their outstanding efforts! Check out their
website
for more information and to donate.
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Click
here
for more information.
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MSNJ Member Discount:
Endocannabinoid Educational Learning System
Medical Cannabis Deemed “Essential” and “Life-Sustaining”
In the current COVID-19 environment, state governments recognize medical cannabis as essential and life sustaining for many different qualifying medical conditions reinforcing the need for essential ECS knowledge. MSNJ has partnered with Havas ECS to give MSNJ members a 10% discount on their Educational Learning System which offers a 12 CME Credit Certification in Endocannabinoid Medicine.
When purchasing these modules,
please register using the email address that MSNJ has on file.
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Garfunkel Wild Webinar: Returning to Work in the COVID-Era: Employee Issues, What to Expect and How to Prepare
Friday, June 12, 2020 from 10:00am to 11:00am
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Click
here
for more information and to access the module.
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NJ Spotlight Roundtable Recording: Medical Ethics During COVID-19
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Free CME Activity: Identifying PTSD in the Community
Click
here
for more information and to access the activity.
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AMA Physician Burnout & Wellness CME Course
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2020 © Medical Society of New Jersey. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the written permission of the Medical Society of New Jersey.
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