Plan to attend the March 6-8, 2008 Interventional Techniques ABIPP Part II Preparation and Cadaver Workshop Review Course.

The review course includes one day of didactics covering various interventional techniques and a two and one-half days of hands-on interventional cadaver workshop designed to meet the needs of interventional pain physicians seeking to refresh or learn new skills and also for those who desire instruction for the ABIPP Part II examination.

During this 3-day event, you can improve existing skills, learn new skills, prepare for the interventional techniques certification, or prepare for the board examination. Whether you have been practicing interventional pain management for many years or are new to the field with basic skills, we are confident you will find this review course and cadaver workshop to be beneficial as it is essential to keep learning. We trust you will be eager to join us for this exceptional opportunity for professional enhancement.

The seminar will be conducted at the Westin Memphis Beale Street and the world famous Medical Education and Research Institute (MERI) in Memphis, TN. Make your plans early to attend. We look forward to seeing you in Memphis.

Samuel Benesh, an internist who practices in Owings Mills, Md., tossed his prescription pad nearly three years ago, and he hasn't missed it since. Patients still get their medications, but now there are no more lost slips of paper or long waits in line at the pharmacy. They don't even need to phone in for refills. It all happens electronically -- or magically, as one of Benesh's patients put it (Connolly, Washington Post, Nov. 25, 2008).

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Log on to the ASIPP Member Blog and give your input on issues that affect you and your patients. An examples of a blog entry is: "We are looking at a new billing software and practice management. It is web based. The name is athenahealth. http://www.athenahealth.com/ Are any ASIPP members using it? I would love some feed back about it or alternatives."

The service will be available to all active members in good-standing. We encourage you to log on and take advantage of this new feature.

Member Blog: Once on the "Members Only" page, click on the "Member Blog" button to access or use the link indicated to go directly to the blog. http://asippme mbersite.org/blog Name: ASIPP Password: memberblog (Case sensitive)

A "Dr Finder" site is now available as welll. This feature allows members to search for physicians by name, location, and/or specialty.

Log on today and get connected.

First it's cuts in reimbursement. Now we are experiencing an economic downturn that really has me worried about the future of my practice. What steps should I take to address my concerns? (Schechter, amednews.com, Dec. 1 Issue).

MedChi, the Maryland State Medical Society, is warning that insurance reimbursement cuts planned for 2009 will make it harder for physicians to stay in business, even as the state's supply of physicians is waning.

The state's largest nonprofit health plan, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, recently issued fee schedules to doctors that include cuts -- called "adjustments" by the insurer -- to take effect in 2009.

A vast majority of physicians in Massachusetts say the fear of being sued is driving them to order unnecessary tests, procedures, referrals, and even hospitalizations, a phenomenon that is adding at least $1.4 billion to annual healthcare costs in the Bay State, according to a study released this week (Lazar, Boston.com, Nov. 18, 2008).

A federal appeals court in Boston on Tuesday dealt a setback to the pharmaceutical industry and companies that collect prescription data for use in drug marketing (Saul, The New York Times, Nov. 18, 2008).

Ruling in support of a New Hampshire law, the court upheld the right of states to prohibit the sale of doctor- specific prescription drug data that is widely used in pharmaceutical marketing.

The Minnesota Society of Interventional Pain Physicians (MSIPP) meeting will be held at the Medtronic World Headquarters on January 27th, 2009 from 6:00pm-8:00pm. Agenda will be annoucnecd soon.

Address: Medtronic World Headquarters 710 Medtronic Parkway Minneapolis, MN 55432-5604 Phone: (763) 514-4000 To join MSIPP or to find out additional information about our organization please call me.

Contact Georgann Gillund Minnesota Society of Interventional Pain Physicians 612-385-8342 for ggillund@painphysicians.com for more information.

Send in your state society's news, annoucements and updates to mmartin@asipp.org.

Iowa's 2009 Drug Control Strategy, released Thursday by the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy, reports that state narcotics agents have worked 79 percent more prescription drug cases this year compared to all of 2007, seizing 348 percent more diverted pharmaceuticals - mostly pain pills.

Beyond wrinkle creams, Botox, megavitamins and hormones, the new Holy Grail in antiaging marketing goes right to the heart of the aging process, promising to slow cellular deterioration by employing the discoveries generated by mainstream medicine (Lazar, Boston.com, Nov. 24, 2008).

A 2005 Illinois law limiting the amount of money juries may award in medical malpractice cases unfairly targets those most seriously injured who deserve the most compensation, lawyers have told the Illinois Supreme Court. Proponents of the law asked the court not to limit what they called lawmakers' attempt to stem a healthcare crisis. The law restricts awards on non-economic damages to $500,000 against doctors and $1 million against hospitals. It was aimed at lowering medial insurance rates blamed for driving physicians out of the state (O'Connor, Chicago Tribune, Nov. 19, 2008).

In compliance with Section 915 of the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007, the FDA has launced a Web site containing links to postmarket drug safety information to improve transparency and communication to patients and healthcare providers.

The site provides links to information on drug labels; medications with risk evaluation and mitigation strategies; postmarket studies; information from MedWatch; and quarterly reports on drugs being evaluated for safety issues.

The Online Abstract Submission (see step-by- step procedures below) for the 11th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians (ASIPP) is now open. The meeting will be held June 26- July 1, 2009 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA.

To be considered for a presentation at the meeting, abstracts must be submitted and completed by the submission deadline of 5 pm Central Standard Time (CST) Monday, January 19, 2009.

Click on the following link for full instructions and to submit. http://www.asip p.org/abstracts/

The AM CPT 2009 Professional Edition, AMA HCPCS 2009 Level II, and AMA Physician ICD-9-CM 2009 - Vol. 1 & 2 are now available online. Get prepared for the new year by purchasing your copies today.

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ASIPP is now offering a new feature for those who advertise on our Positions Wanted section of the ASIPP Website. As a service to our advertisers and our members, please find the link to each current job posting.

Fellows hip Trained Physician - Northwest Indiana

Out patient Interventional Pain Physician - Atlanta, Georgia

Pain Management Opportunity - Pennsylvania

Entrepre neurial Opportunity - Lake Tahoe, Nevada

Florida Opportunities

Pain Medicine Fellowship Program Opportunity

BC/ BE Physiatrist - Shrewsbury, New Jersey

Part nership Opportunity - Milwaukee, Wisconsin

100% Pain Practice - Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Natio nal Pain Institute - Florida

Interv entional Pain Specialist - Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

MAYO CLINIC - Cardiac Anesthesiologist

Interven tional Pain Physiatrist Wanted - Nevada