Weekly Roundup: In Case You Missed It

March 17, 2023

X-Waiver Rescinded 



As of Jan 1, X-waiver is no longer required per federal law. Going forward, all prescriptions for buprenorphine only require a standard DEA registration number. Additionally, there are no longer any limits or patient caps on the number of patients a prescriber may treat for opioid use disorder with buprenorphine. The DEA will also be adding training requirements for all DEA applications and renewals, but the AMA sent a letter to the DEA pointing out that this requirement will create more barriers for patients seeking treatment. Read our full article. 

CMA Sponsors Bill to Reform Prior Authorization


SB 598, authored by Senator Nancy Skinner, would require plans to create exemption programs that allow physicians who are practicing within the plan's criteria 90% of the time to receive a one-year exemption from the plan's PA requirements. Additionally, the legislation will give a treating physician the right to have an appeal of a PA denial conducted by a physician peer of the same or similar specialty. This will help to streamline the appeal process, and make certain that patients are receiving timely access to medically appropriate care. 

Data Exchange Changes Coming



Learn about why data exchange matters and how to prepare for the Data Exchange Framework changes to come in the next few years in CMA’s Data Exchange Explainer Series webinars. The first session is available on demand and the next session will take place on Thursday, April 13 addressing legal and policy issues surrounding data exchange. Learn more here

The End of the PHE, Updated Guidance from CDPH



The public health emergency is coming to an end soon. CMA created a guide to help you understand how the end of the PHE impacts your practice including changes to waivers and telehealth, and reflects CDPH's updated guidance on masking, vaccination for health care workers, and isolation after infection. 

Apply for Additional GME Slots



The application cycle for the 200 FY 2024 slots is currently open and will remain open until March 31, 2023. In order to be eligible for these additional FTE resident cap slots, a hospital must qualify in at least one of the following four categories:    

  • Hospitals in rural areas (or treated as being located in a rural area under the law)   
  • Hospitals training a number of residents in excess of their GME cap   
  • Hospitals in states with new medical schools or branch campuses   
  • Hospitals that serve areas designated as health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) 

Medi-Cal Rx to Reinstate Prior Authorization for Some Drugs on March 24


DHCS will initiate the first of a series of Medi-Cal Rx transition policy lifts for beneficiaries 22 years of age and older starting March 24. To see which standard therapeutic classes will be impacted by the first transition lift, click here. Questions about the Medi-Cal Rx reinstatement? DHCS is hosting live webinars via Zoom every Friday at 12 pm. No registration is required.

CMA Statement Following President Biden’s New Action to Reduce Gun Violence



In response to President Joe Biden’s visit to Monterey Park, California to announce an Executive Order to increase background checks on gun sales, Donaldo Hernandez, MD, CMA President, issued the following statement: “CMA applauds President Joe Biden’s executive order to increase the number of background checks on gun sales and bring the country closer to the widely supported goal of universal background checks. This action, taken by the President builds upon the law he signed last year, which was the most significant gun safety legislation in decades”. Click here to read the full statement.

Bipartisan Conrad 30 Legislation Introduced in Senate



On March 6, S. 665 (the Conrad State 30 and Physician Access Reauthorization Act) was introduced in the Senate, aiming to address the ongoing shortage of physicians, especially in rural and underserved areas. Under the Conrad 30 program, each state is granted 30 waivers to allocate to physicians permitting them to forgo the requirement to return to their country of origin so long as they are willing to work in a medically underserved community for three years.  

Save Money with Small Changes


ACCMA’s My Green Doctor program presents a free 40-minute on demand webinar offered by the American Medical Association. Watch the webinar yourself at any time and ask your office manager to watch as well to learn how easy it is to save money with environmentally sustainable practice management. Click here to claim CME after watching the webinar. Learn more about this money-saving membership benefit here

WEBINARS & EVENTS

The Medical Society Consortium on Climate & Health’s Annual Meeting 

Sunday, March 19 and Monday, March 20 

Virtual or in-person 

 

Join leaders in climate policy and health equity as they provide their perspectives on the opportunities ahead. This year’s Annual Meeting theme is Seize the Moment for Climate Action: Building the Climate and Health Movement. The historic passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and other recent regional, state, and local climate policy present important new opportunities, but also new challenges, to achieving the goals of their Policy Action Agenda. We need to ensure every medical professional who is willing is empowered and prepared to advocate on the local, state, and federal levels to ensure that these dollars are best spent on climate, health, and equity. 

 

Register here

How Prior Authorization Disrupts Patient Care – And How We Can Fix It 

Thursday, March 23 | 9:00 to 10:00 am 

 

AMA President Jack Resneck Jr., MD, will dig further into the current state of prior authorization, and how the AMA is working to fix it. Heather McComas, PharmD, Director, Administrative Simplification Initiatives, AMA, and Emily Carroll, JD, Senior Legislative Attorney, Advocacy Resource Center, AMA, will join Dr. Resneck to talk about the latest reform efforts and how you can get involved. You’ll also hear about results of the AMA’s latest prior authorization survey conducted at the end of 2022. 

 

Register here.

Key Strategies for Addressing Violence in the Medical Practice

Thursday, March 30 | 12:00 to 1:00 pm 

Hosted by the Cooperative of American Physicians (CAP) 

  

Healthcare workers experience the highest rates of injuries caused by workplace violence.* This free webinar will address essential strategies for implementing a workplace violence prevention program in your practice. CAP’s team of risk management and patient safety specialists will teach you and your staff how to avoid and prepare for dangerous scenarios, ranging from verbal attacks to physical assaults, or worse. The discussion will be followed by audience Q&A. Register now to receive the recording and slides once they are available. 

 *Bureau of Labor Statistics. Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities. 2018. https://www.bls.gov/iif/factsheets/workplace-violence-healthcare-2018.htm 

 

Register here.

Leadership Reading and Discussion Group 

Wednesday, April 5 | 6:00 to 7:30 pm 

 

Join Dr. Hilary Worthen, Program Director of the Physician Leadership Program, and fellow physicians for a rich discussion on creating psychological safety in the workplace. Reading the book of the month is not required to join the discussion, however you can access the book to read on your downtime or download the free audiobook (with the 3-month Audible trial) here.  

 

RSVP here

Leading the Charge: Embedding Health Equity into the Forefront of Value Based Care 

Thursday, April 6 | 12:15 to 1:15 pm 

 

Despite the successes demonstrated by accountable care organizations (ACOs) over the last decade, health disparities remain a critical and ever-growing challenge. ACOs have the potential to advance health equity, but without intentionality and guardrails in place, they are also in a position to worsen existing health disparities. For ACOs to truly succeed in improving patient health outcomes for all, it's imperative that health equity is kept at the forefront of value-based care efforts. 

 

Click here to register.

End of the X-Waiver: A New Frontier in Addiction Treatment 

Wednesday, April 19 | 10:00 to 11:00 am 

Hosted by the National Overdose Prevention Network 

 

The recent elimination of the X-Waiver, a burdensome requirement for clinicians to prescribe addiction treatment, is now gone ... what’s next? Dr. Roneet Lev, an emergency and addiction physician who served as the first Chief Medical Officer of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy joins us for a conversation breaking down the new legislative move, what it means for providers, and steps you can take to get more clinicians to prescribe addiction treatment in your community. 

 

Register here.

49th Annual CMA Legislative Day 

Wednesday, April 19  

 

Join us for an all-day event in Sacramento to lobby legislators on priority health care issues. Members who join us will be provided an agenda that highlights all legislative meetings and talking points, so this is a great opportunity for first-timers to experience the legislative process in action.  

 

Click here to RSVP. 

Introduction to Value-Based Care for Physicians 

Thursday, April 20 | 12:15 to 1:15 pm 

 

CMA’s PSO is proud to partner with Integrated Healthcare Association to provide this webinar and other resources to help physician practices, community health centers and other stakeholders improve encounter data quality.  

 

Click here to register. 

Health IT: Powering Value-Based Care 

Monday, May 22 | 9:00 am to 4:00 pm 

Sacramento, CA | Free for CMA members 

 

Save the date for CMA’s first annual healt IT conference. The conference will bring together thought leaders from across California and the nation to explore the intersection of technology and payment reform. CMA expects a diverse set of attendees that will include physicians, medical groups and IPAs, health plans, health information organizations (HIOs) and others who will take the learnings from this conference to change how care is delivered in this state. 

 

Register here

ACCMA's On-Demand Library


To access all on-demand programs, go to https://www.pathlms.com/medical-society/courses 

 

QUESTIONS/CONCERNS?

Please contact ACCMA at 510-654-5383 or accma@accma.orgwith any questions or concerns you have.
  
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