Interventional Techniques in Chronic Spinal Pain is the premier manual for interventional pain management physicians. This must have text book has an expected publication date of Summer 2007. All proceeds go to the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians.

Preorder your copy

The ASIPP Comprehensive Imaging Review in Interventional Pain Management will be held on July 13-15, 2007 in Las Vegas, with a competency certification in Fluoroscopic Interpretation and Radiation Safety for Physicians only to follow on July 16. Online brochure and registration are now available.

The ASIPP room block at the MGM Grand Signature ends tomorrow, June 21 at 5 pm so please book your room before deadline to assure a room and the special reduced price. Call 702-891-1111 or 800- 700-2655 and inform the agent you are booking under ASIPP.

The comprehensive seminar is only offered every other year and is designed to provide interventional pain physicians with the ability to understand radiological evaluations and fluoroscopic interpretation.

This course is an essential component for interventional pain physicians and will provide educational opportunities to assist you in providing high quality, competent, safe, and cost-efficient services to your patients.

Brochure 

Register Online Today!

On June 15, 2007 the Florida state HB 1155 containing the FLASPER (NASPER) act was signed by Gov. Charlie Crist. Congratulations to all who worked to bring this important legislation to Florida.

Over the past four years, many have worked diligently to get this legislation passed included among these are the Florida State Society (FSIPP) of Interventional Pain Physicians and Rep. Gayle Harrell.

The FSIPP Board members in particular worked aggressively on FLASER. Thanks and congratulations to Lora Brown, MD, President; Harold Cordner, MD, President-elect; Raymond Priewe, MD, Vice President; Deborah Tracy, MD, Secretary; and Andrea Trescot, MD (Immediate Past President) and Rafael Miguel, MD, Executive Co-chairs for Legislative Affairs. Also on the board are Marshall Bedder, MD; James Worden, MD; Scott Dramarich, MD; Chuck Gruden, MD; Rob Dehgan, MD; Frank Zondlo, MD; and Francisco Torres, MD.

SB 1879 passed into law and was signed by Gov. Rick Perry. Prior to the passing of this bill, Texas monitored only Schedule II prescription drugs and required pharmacies to obtain controlled substance registration certificates.

S.B. 1879 extends such monitoring to Schedule III through V drugs and establishes administrative penalties for noncompliance with such monitoring. The bill also makes several changes to the current monitoring program to better ensure that all entities involved in the drug distribution process are monitored and held in compliance with the law.

See text of SB 1879

HB 684 died in the Louisiana state legislature today. If the bill had passed, it would have  allowed CRNAs to perform interventional pain procedures.

The language contained within the bill is counter to the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners' statement which prohibits physician from prescribing, delegating or supervising a CRNA with respect to such procedures.

Congratulations to The Louisiana Society of  Interventional Pain Physicians for their relentless work to stop this bill. Special thanks go to Allen Parr, MD, Jimmy Ponder, MD and J. Michael Burdine.

See HB684

ASIPP is offering a Comprehensive Pain Medicine Board Review Course for physicians seeking board certification or re-certification for ABMS Pain Medicine examination or for American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians Part I examination.

The review course will be held on Aug. 5-10 in Nashville, TN This six-day intensive Board Review Course is a CME activity which is geared to prepare physicians for their pain boards but can also serve an in-depth review of the specialty of pain medicine.

To register on-line or for more information on the review course or to register, visit our Web site.

Meetings

ABIPP Part I To Be Administered in August

ABIPP Part 1 exam will be administered in Nashville, TN, on Aug. 11, 2007 and registration is now open. The minimum requirements for eligibility are:

• A Primary ABMS or AOA board certification
• An active license to practice medicine in the UnitedStates
  

ABIPP
Review Course Information

• ABIPP Application

WASHINGTON - Responding to concerns that private fee-for-service plans for Medicare are not being accurately marketed, the Centers for Medicare Medicaid Services has announced a suspension in marketing for the plans.

Healthcare Finance News

Ronald McIver is a prisoner in a medium-security federal compound in Butner, N.C. He is 63 years old, of medium height and overweight, with a white Santa Claus beard, white hair and a calm, direct and intelligent manner. He is serving 30 years for drug trafficking, and so will likely live there the rest of his life. McIver (pronounced mi-KEE-ver) has not been convicted of drug trafficking in the classic sense. He is a doctor who for years treated patients suffering from chronic pain. At the Pain Therapy Center, his small storefront office not far from Main Street in Greenwood, SC, he cracked backs, gave trigger-point injections and put patients through physical therapy. He administered ultrasound and gravity-inversion therapy and devised exercise regimens. And he wrote prescriptions for high doses of opioid drugs like OxyContin.
(Rosenberg- Washington Times July 17, 2007)

The New York Times

Location, location, location. The May issue of Medical Economics addressed practice location for doctors starting out or relocating. The rating is based on many different factors such as, malpractice environment, reimbursements, doctor-to population ratio, etc.

Medical Economics

The 2007 Guidelines have recently been accepted for inclusion in the National Guideline Clearinghouse and are now available on the to be NGC Web site.

If you are interested in working on future articles or systematic reviews for the Pain Physician Journal, please contact Holly Long at hlong@asipp.org

See 2007 Guidelines

National Guideline Clearing House

Washington, DC -U.S. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, introduced S. Res. 225 today, designating August 2007 as "National Medicine Abuse Awareness Month." The Resolution encourages parents to educate themselves and to talk to their teens about the dangers associated with medicine abuse.

See text of resolution