October 2006

(10/25/2006)  --  Finding stories on ANN just got a lot easier. The AAFP News Now archives now have their own search function. Simply type keywords in the field under "SEARCH" in the top right corner of any AAFP web page and click "GO." More

(10/25/2006)  --  Family physicians looking to reduce their risk of investing in an electronic health record system take note: A second group of ambulatory EHR products has received the industry's only "seal of approval." More

(10/25/2006)  --  This year's AAFP Conference on Practice Improvement: Health Information and Patient Education, scheduled for Nov. 9-12 in Denver, is all about helping family physicians better manage their medical practices and patients. More

(10/25/2006)  --  A few family physicians have welcomed the opportunity to serve as a voice for family medicine by serving on physician advisory committees set up by some of the nation's largest insurance companies. More

(10/25/2006)  --  A new document on the AAFP Web site aims to guide clinicians' immunization practices. The revised Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule features several changes, including routinely giving some patients the human papillomavirus, or HPV, vaccine approved earlier this year. More

(10/24/2006)  --  Survivors of childhood cancers confront more than their share of chronic diseases, according to the abstract for "Chronic Health Conditions in Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer," a study reported in the Oct. 12 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine. More

(10/20/2006)  --  Two articles in the September/October issue of Annals of Family Medicine analyze the effect of patients' insurance status on their health care or lack of care. One article gives a glimpse into what happens when patients lose Medicaid coverage. Another article shows how physicians’ clinical decisions take into account patients’ insurance status. More

(10/18/2006)  --  Using the fax machine to communicate with Medicare Part D prescription drug plans may save time for family physicians seeking an exception to a drug denial or formulary change, according to the CMS Physician Regulatory Issues Team, or PRIT. More

(10/18/2006)  --  Drug stores and grocery stores may be holding influenza vaccine clinics, but many physicians' offices have received partial or no shipments of the vaccine. To help address the situation, the Academy is posting regular updates about influenza vaccine availability on its Web site, and the CDC has circulated an informational letter to health care professionals. More

(10/18/2006)  --  "Family medicine can help lead the renewal" of academic health centers, or AHCs, says the overview for "Shaping the Future of Academic Health Centers: The Role of Family Medicine Faculty and Departments," a supplement to the September/October issue of Annals of Family Medicine. More

(10/18/2006)  --  Medicare is not getting the best value for the health care it purchases for America's seniors, according to a new report issued by the Institute of Medicine, or IOM. In general, says the report, the federal program rewards providers for the volume, rather than the quality, of services they provide -- a situation pay-for-performance incentives could help address. More

(10/18/2006)  --  Rural family physicians soon may be joining their urban counterparts in projects to increase broadband telemedicine capabilities. Those projects would result from a Federal Communications Commission initiative to increase the use of telemedicine by improving rural physicians' access to broadband telecommunications systems. More

(10/18/2006)  --  It may be hard to believe, but the holiday season is fast approaching. If your holiday travel plans require renting a car, your AAFP membership can provide some savings. More

(10/17/2006)  --  Texas has more uninsured residents than any other state in the nation. Of its 254 counties, 64 have no hospital, 27 have no physicians, 16 have only one physician and 177 qualify as federally designated medically underserved areas. To meet future demand for health care, the state must increase its physician workforce by 20 percent each year and its medical residency positions by 600 every two years for the next 10 years, according to a new report by the Texas Primary Care Coalition. More

(10/17/2006)  --  The Texas Academy of Family Physicians has 5,500 members, but -- as a member of the Texas Primary Care Coalition, which encompasses the Texas AFP, the Texas Academy of Internal Medicine and the Texas Pediatric Society -- it is able to speak with a voice that is nearly 15,000 strong. A chorus that large tends to be heard in legislative halls, the house of medicine and the news media. More

(10/16/2006)  --  The Academy's federal political action committee, FamMedPAC, a mere 16 months old, has already raised $377,565, and the Academy is seeing "the bang for the buck" after donating to lawmakers, says one FamMedPAC leader. More

(10/13/2006)  --  "Physicians are subject to a unique business model where a third party regulates not only their business model but also the payment for their services, and where the purchaser of the services is distanced from the costs," said AAFP Board Chair Larry Fields, M.D., of Flatwoods, Ky., in an Oct. 6 letter to CMS Administrator Mark McClellan, M.D., Ph.D. More

(10/12/2006)  --  When newly installed AAFP President Rick Kellerman, M.D., spoke to family physicians at the recent Scientific Assembly opening ceremony in Washington, he moved some audience members to tears. More

(10/12/2006)  --  Register soon for the "Influenza Update: Seasonal and Pandemic" webcast the Academy will host from noon to 1 p.m. CDT on Oct. 19. The program has been approved for 1 CME credit. More

(10/11/2006)  --  Want your federal legislators to improve Medicare physician payment? Get 'em while they're home campaigning. More

(10/11/2006)  --  Will you be able to care for your Medicare patients next year while sustaining a 5.1 percent decrease in reimbursement? More (Members Only)

(10/11/2006)  --  Family physicians make note of a Medicare coding change: Effective Jan. 1, 2007, screening fecal occult blood tests must be billed with CPT code 82270. More

(10/11/2006)  --  Family physicians are needed all over the world, and the AAFP provides opportunities for its members to serve patients and fellow family physicians on an international and domestic level. More

(10/11/2006)  --  Paying for patient care instead of medical services may be one way to simplify a health system that currently generates more than 30 billion transactions a year, said experts at a Sept. 27 health policy forum here sponsored by the Atlantic Media Company/National Journal Group. More

(10/10/2006)  --  More than a few family physicians would likely relish the opportunity to grade the performance of the health plans with which they do business. More

(10/10/2006)  --  Five fourth-year medical students have received up to $28,000 through the Pisacano Scholars Leadership Program from the Pisacano Leadership Foundation of the American Board of Family Medicine. The foundation gives scholarships each year to several students who evidence leadership, academic excellence, strong communication skills, character and integrity, and community service. More

(10/09/2006)  --  Ensure access to high quality primary care patient care, and the money will follow. That mantra, recited often to physicians, also applies to any value-based purchasing system Congress envisions for Medicare, said AAFP Speaker Tom Weida, M.D., during testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health. More

(10/09/2006)  --  All aspects of pay for performance, or P4P, will come under the AAFP microscope as a result of a resolution passed by the Academy's Congress of Delegates on Sept. 27 in Washington, D.C. More

(10/06/2006)  --  Influenza season is around the corner, and some influenza vaccine shipments are arriving in family physicians' offices and nonmedical sites. To help members stay up-to-date on influenza vaccine questions, the Academy has put Influenza Vaccine Information 2006-2007 on its Web site. More

(10/06/2006)  --  The value of health information technology in helping transform America's health care system was highlighted in a keynote address delivered by HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt at the Third Annual HIT Summit on Sept. 26 in Washington. More

(10/06/2006)  --  CMS Deputy Administrator Leslie Norwalk, J.D., has been named acting administrator of the agency effective Oct. 15. Norwalk will succeed Mark McClellan, M.D., Ph.D., in the post. More

(10/04/2006)  --  It's not too late to review for this year's American Board of Family Medicine examinations nor too early to get a head start on next year's exam. More

(10/04/2006)  --  Medical errors account for more deaths annually than motor vehicle accidents or breast cancer; nearly 100,000 deaths every year are attributed to medical error, making it the fifth leading cause of death in the United States. More

(10/04/2006)  --  Turnout was small, but issues important to FPs were tossed about at a Town Hall meeting on public and private sector advocacy Sept. 29 at the AAFP's Scientific Assembly in Washington, D.C. More

(10/03/2006)  --  Want to provide high-quality, patient-centered care? Then stand up and advocate it, urged Richard Wherry, M.D., of Dahlonega, Ga. By doing so, family physicians will improve care, increase their visibility and enhance their bottom line, he said as leader of the Sept. 29 Dialogue session, “Why Advocacy is Good Medicine,” at the AAFP Scientific Assembly. More

(10/03/2006)  --  Each year at the AAFP Assembly, the Academy recognizes members and others for their outstanding contributions to family medicine. The following persons were honored during this year’s Assembly, Sept. 27-Oct 1 in Washington, D.C. More

(10/03/2006)  --  A number of research posters were presented during the AAFP Scientific Assembly, Sept. 27-Oct. 1 in Washington, D.C. Poster winners were eligible to receive awards up to $700. More

(10/03/2006)  --  At the Dialogue session “Viewing Addiction as a Chronic Illness: Recognition, Diagnosis and Management,” held Sept. 28, at the AAFP Scientific Assembly, most of the audience’s questions focused on the management of chronic pain and determining whether patients who have an increasing need for pain medication are addicts. The Dialogue leaders and participants shared insights into the challenge of distinguishing patients with addiction from patients with dependence on pain medication. More

(10/03/2006)  --  Should you buy imaging equipment to use the extra exam room in your office? Should you accept the offer to be a shareholder in your practice? Should you buy your office building rather than continue to rent? Family physicians contemplating such business deals should ensure that the revenue generated over the course of time will exceed the initial investment, according to Mark Needham, M.D., M.B.A., and Bernard Katz, M.D., M.B.A. More

(10/02/2006)  --  The AAFP Congress of Delegates on Sept. 27 championed public policy measures that ranged from rural services for veterans to the care of undocumented immigrants. This summary hits a few highlights of delegates’ public policy efforts. More

(10/02/2006)  --  The nation should adopt policies that will enlarge the primary health care workforce and stave off a growing primary care physician shortage, says a new workforce report approved by the AAFP Congress of Delegates on Sept. 27. More

(10/02/2006)  --  The rapid pace of science and technology promises to change the face of medicine and the way family physicians practice medicine in the next 25 years, said former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich during opening ceremonies for AAFP’s Scientific Assembly on Sept. 28. More