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September 18,
2006
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IN
THIS ISSUE
Editor's
Column:Nurses
CDC Non-scientists Reap Rewards
MDCH Updates 'Characteristics
Of The Uninsured' Report
BCBS
Revamps Health Care Resources Brochure
Third-Party
Payer Day
The
Benefit Of Paying Dues Early
MSMS
Health Care Reform Symposium
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Click
Here To Contact Us
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Editor's
Column:
Nurses
By
JOSEPH WEISS, MD
Likely,
each of us can relate an anecdote of how a savvy nurse
told us what to do and so helped us when were clueless
or about to make an egregious error. Often as not nurses
function as co-workers rather than as “ancillary” medical
personnel.
We
cannot allow sentiment to interfere with opposition to
state Senate Bill 1245. This bill would give nurse practitioners
the right to prescribe medication on their recognizance.
The bill eliminates the role of physician monitoring,
and even worse, places assessing the competency of nurse
practitioners to write prescriptions into the hands of
a national agency. The bill, if it becomes law, bypasses
not only physician oversight, but eliminates the Michigan
Medical Licensing Board or any other state agency from
scrutinizing and judging the appropriateness of the nurses’ prescription
patterns.
This
is the issue: the training of nurse practitioner lacks
the time, intensity and supervision that are the hallmark
of physician training. One year of classroom study and
another six months in varied clinical settings does not
give a nurse the background that is equivalent to the
three to seven years of a resident’s training and learning.
The
nurses were clever to add the word “advanced” to their
nurse practitioner title. That phrase “advanced” gives
them an aura of competence that their extra classroom
hours do not earn for them.
No
doubt the nurses are receiving at least tacit support
from health insurance companies. They see this battle
between us and the nurses as a way of lowering the status
of physicians, and as a chance to pay out less in claims.
We
have no choice but to go to Lansing and make a case for
our cause.
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CDC
Non-scientists Reap Rewards
By PAUL NATINSKY
Non-science
employees at the federal Centers for Disease Control have
received most of the cash awards and performance bonuses
paid by the agency, according to recent newspaper reports.
Research by the New York Times and the Atlanta Journal Constitution
revealed that employees in the office of CDC Director Dr. Julie Gerberding
have benefitted the most, with William H. Gimson III, the agency's
chief operating officer receiving bonuses totaling $147,863.
In response, CDC spokespeople said several factors may have contributed
to the bonuses, including that several employees were involved in
the implementation of a major $60 million accounting system, President
Bush's influx of money to the federal bureaucracy was targeted toward
management, not science and that 800 of the 4,200 employees at the
CDC are part of the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and
therefore not eligible for awards.
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MDCH
Updates 'Characteristics Of The Uninsured' Report
The Michigan Department of
Community Health recently updated and released a report, “Characteristics
of the Uninsured and Select Health Insurance Coverage in
Michigan.” This report was first prepared by MDCH in 2001,
and has been updated in 2003 and 2006. The report is based
on the US Census Bureau Current Population Survey data
for Michigan and includes profiles of the uninsured, employer-based
coverage, and individually purchased coverage.
It is the intent of MDCH to
continue to update this report as new US Census Bureau
Current Population Survey data becomes available. Therefore,
suggestions for improving future editions of this report
are welcome.
To
view the report, visit http://www.michigan.gov/documents/July_2006_2002-2004_data_Final_Report_166634_7.pdf or http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132-2944_5327-17224--,00.html
For
more information, call Lonnie David Barnett at MDCH at
(517) 241-2963.
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BCBS
Revamps Health Care Resources Brochure
Blue Cross Blue
Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network have produced
new editions of the regional “Help With Health Care” brochures
that list resources for Michigan residents who have no
health insurance. The brochures can be found online at www.bcbsm.com/helpwithhealthcare .
There are four regional versions: Southeast Michigan, West Michigan,
Mid-Michigan and Northern Michigan/Upper Peninsula. They feature
information on free and low-cost health clinics, government-sponsored
programs such as MIChild and Healthy Kids, plus prescription drug
programs, community health plans, mental health and substance abuse
resources, dental and vision services, Medicaid and more. The 2006
editions have a new type size that is larger and easier to read,
plus a glossary of terms.
Multiple print copies can be ordered by faxing requests to the Michigan
Blues at (248) 448-8055, Attention: “Help with Health Care,” or by
calling (800) 658-6715. Please include name, organization, shipping
address and number of each version needed.
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Third-Party
Payer Day
Group
Managers: Save the Date for Third Party Payer Day!
Friday, November 17, Lansing
Sponsored by MSMS, the Michigan Medical Group Management Association,
the Michigan Medical Billers Association, and the Michigan Osteopathic
Association, Third Party Payer Day features all the major payers
of Michigan, who will present expected changes for the coming year,
give feedback on how to get claims paid in a timely manner, and answer
questions about claims processing and reimbursement.
The Medicaid claims department also will be on hand to meet one-on-one
with attendees to discuss problem claims and answer questions. (Bring
your Medicaid claims and the remittance advice that had the rejection
on it for each claim.)
For details, visit www.michmgma.org
or contact Sherry Barnhart at (517) 336-5786 or sbarnhart@msms.org
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Pay your 2007
Membership Dues by December 31 to receive free CME! Paying
your dues in full by December 31, 2006, will enable you
to receive one free registration to any MSMS educational
program or conference in 2007 (excluding the MSMS Annual
Scientific Meeting). Upon receipt of your dues, you’ll
receive a coupon for which to use when registering. And
don’t forget, up to 86% of your dues may be tax-deductible!
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Symposium
Will Address
Medicaid Reform, Disease Management, RHIOs & More
Returning for a third year, the MSMS Symposium on Health Care Reform – scheduled
for Wednesday, October 4, at the Hotel Baronette in Novi – will bring
together a broad range of speakers and participants, including physicians,
policymakers, legislators, state government employees and health
care administrators, to share their knowledge and background on issues
related to health care. Developed to stimulate change within the
health care community, this conference will provide an excellent
opportunity for participants to exchange ideas and stay in touch
with the latest health care trends and topics. The conference will
include panel discussions on:
• Disease Management
• Access to Health Care
• Medicaid Reform
• Wellness and Prevention
• Medicare Reform
• Regional Health Information Organizations (RHIOs)
Among the many great speakers and panelists
will be Thomas W. Arnold, Deputy Secretary of Florida’s Medicaid
Agency for Health Care Administration; Michael Ditmore, MD, Interim
Director, Division of Medical Services, Missouri Department of Social
Services; Kimberlydawn Wisdom, MD, Michigan’s Surgeon General; and
Sandra S. Marks, Assistant Director, Division of Federal Affairs,
American Medical Association.
Cost of the program is $110 for MSMS and MMGMA members, $150 for
non-members. Continental breakfast and lunch will be provided.
This program has been approved for a maximum of six hours of Category
I CME credit. The program will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.
For more information
contact Melinda Sandford at MSMS at (517) 336-7575 or msandford@msms.org.
To register
contact the MSMS Registrar at (517) 3365784 or abatten@msms.org.
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