September 9, 2009
ASIPP Member Stephen Lester, Family Killed in Plane Crash |
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On Saturday one of our members was killed in a tragic plane crash. Dr. Stephen Lester was a frequent faculty member and last assisted ASIPP at the May Vertebroplasty course. ASIPP has lost a loyal member and friend.
Dr. Lester was a frequent faculty member and last assisted ASIPP at the May Vertebroplasty course. ASIPP has lost a loyal member and friend. Lester and his wife Dana, 16-year-old daughter Laura, 13-year-old Christina, and close family friend Ken Veteto were all killed.
The airplane was on its way to OU's season opener in Dallas when Lester's plane clipped a cable on a communication tower. Investigators say there was zero visibility because of dense fog.
"We at ASIPP will miss Dr. Lester tremendously," said Dr. Laxmaiah Manchikanti, ASIPP CEO. "He was a knowledgeable speaker and frequent member of our workshop faculty. Our condolecences go out to his remaining family, his friends, patients, and the community of Tulsa."
Dr. Lester and his wife, Dana, were high school sweethearts and OU graduates. Dr. Lester was an experienced anesthesiologist and pain management doctor. He used his plane to fly around the country delivering seminars about pain management.
All five victims were men and women of faith. The Lesters recently returned from a mission trip to Africa.
"All I can say is, Tulsa lost a tremendous man and family," said Tom Lester, Dr. Lester's father. "I'll miss 'em. But they're with God now," And that really, I know I'm bawling, but that really gives me a great deal of peace."
The Lesters have two surviving children: a daughter who is in college, and a son in the U.S. Coast Guard.
Their funeral will be Thursday at the Park Plaza Church of Christ, in Tulsa, OK. A fund for the two surviving children has been established: Lester Family Memorial Fund c/o Regent Bank 7136 S. Yale, Ste 100 Tulsa, OK 74136. Mr. Sean Kouplen, President.
www.newson6.com |
Documentation for Dummies |
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Just 4 more days to take advantage of early registration discounts. Documentation for Dummies course offers extensive and detailed sessions on coding for interventional pain management. This is a opportunity for you and your staff to gain new information and also to get answers for your troubling coding questions. Register
This course will be held on Oct. 9-11 in Memphis, TN at the the historic Peabody Hotel and will focus on the more practical aspects of coding and billing and the correct way to document medical necessity and indications.
The lectures will be given by the most experienced in the field. You will be taken through the proper evaluation and management services and documentation step-by-step process, leading to an algorithmic approach to interventional pain management.
This is a course you can't afford to miss!
Course details can be found online. Brochure
Register Today! |
Comprehensive Review Course and Cadaver Workshop |
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Register today for the Comprehensive Review Course and Cadaver Workshop in Interventional Pain Techniques will provide an opportunity for hands-on instruction in basic, intermediate or ABIPP Part II examination preparation.
The course will be held on October 9-11 in Memphis, TN at the historic Peabody Hotel and the world famous Medical Education and Research Institute.
With the choice of multiple experience levels, this course is ideal for those with more basic skills desiring to develop new skill to those more experienced who are preparing to take the ABIPP Part II examination.
Space is limited in each level so early registration is encouraged.
Register Online Today |
Healthcare Bill - Continue to Write Congress and White House |
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We know most everyone has strong opinions and great fears regarding the pending healthcare bill. We caution you to pay close attention to the bill; the progress, proposals, and debates.
There are some good aspects to the bill but unfortunately there are many bad aspects that could have dire consequences to our specialty of interventional pain management and the nation in general. Because of this, we urge you to contact Congress immediately and ask your government officials to say "no" to the healthcare bill as it is currently written.
Once again we have provided you a Capwiz link to send your message. While we provide sample text for those who chose to use it, the letter is editable and you should feel free to change it as you desire. The important thing is to let Congress know how you feel about the bill.
Capwiz link for physicians: http://www.capwiz.com/a sipp/issues/alert/alertid=13785876&type=ML
We also encourage you to get staff, patients and family to get involved. We have provided a link appropriate for non-physicians as well.
Capwiz link for non-physicians: http://www.capwiz.com/a sipp/issues/alert/?alertid=13805151&type=ML |
ABIPP Part II to be offered April 25, 2010 |
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The ABIPP Part II practical examination will be offered for the first time through ABIPP on April 25, 2010 in Memphis, TN.
ABIPP will accept the World Institute of Pain's (WIP) Fellow of Interventional Pain Practice (FIPP) certification as fulfillment of the ABIPP Part II for certification prior to April 2009. A revised application indicating this change is now available on the ABIPP Web site.
Per the request of ASIPP Board Member, Gabor B. Racz, MD, special consideration will be made for the 5 candidates for the FIPP examination this month in Budapest. The examination components will be reviewed and if all the regulations have been followed, this exam will be accepted. Absolutely, please do not contact us with regards to FIPP or its eligibility after April 2009 examination in New York and September examination for 5 candidates in Budapest.
http://www.abipp.org/forms/diplomate/abippCertificationApplicationasDiplomate.pdf
http://www.asipp.org/meetings.htm |
ASIPP Annual Meeting Participants Find Format a Great Success |
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The evaluation forms have been tallied and the results are in. Attendees of the 11th annual meeting of ASIPP, held June 27-30th in Arlington, VA, filled out evaluation forms of speakers and the meeting itself.
Speakers and session leaders alike were touted as a success. The course mean was 4.37 out of 5, meaning all 27 members of the faculty scored in the good to excellent range overall.
Participants found that the subject matter, staffing, discussing, issues and topics addresses were all presented in highly competent manner (91%), in ways that were interesting and instruction (86%) and most importantly, translated in 93% of all participants believing the course had the ability to improve their own patient's outcomes.
Next year's meeting is scheduled for June 26-30th. |
GAO: Physicians Should be Paid Less for Medicare Services Performed on the Same Day |
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WASHINGTON - A new report issued Monday by the General Accountability Office says Medicare reimbursement to physicians should be trimmed to account for efficiencies that occur when a physician treats the same beneficiary on the same day for multiple services.
The GAO said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should take steps to ensure that physician fees reflect efficiencies occurring when services are commonly furnished together. For example, some resources required for the services may not need to be duplicated.
Healthcare Finance News |
House vs. Senate: How Healthcare Proposals Compare |
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As the political bargaining moves into the final stages, lawmakers will address the key issues: rising insurance costs, the uninsured, protecting the insured, quality of care and Medicare.
Returning from their summer recess, congressional lawmakers are facing a climatic showdown to the yearlong struggle over healthcare. At issue are scores of competing provisions scattered through half a dozen bills. And no final decisions have been made on any of them.
In the House, Democratic leaders are synthesizing the proposals of three committees, but floor debate has not begun. In the Senate, a bill close to the expected House blueprint has been approved by the health committee formerly headed by the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). But a less liberal version is being developed by the Senate Finance Committee, where moderate Democrats are negotiating with a handful of Republicans.
Los Angeles Times |
Who Will Care for the Newly Insured? |
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2013. That's the year everyone would have to have health insurance under the House version of the health care bill. It may seem like the far distant future - especially if you don't have insurance now - but many experts say it's not nearly enough time to beef up the supply of physicians necessary to care for the tens of millions suddenly entering the health care system.
Researchers point to Massachusetts, which passed a universal health care law in 2006, as a real-world example of what can happen when a new part of the population suddenly gains access to insurance and health care. A study by the Massachusetts Medical Society found that 24 percent of residents reported having difficulty getting the care they needed in 2008, up from 16 percent the previous year. Among the main reasons for the logjam: long waits for an appointment. The same study found that the percentage of family doctors who were no longer accepting new patients grew to 35 percent in 2008 from 25 percent in 2006.
Even without an influx of new patients, doctors are likely to be in increasingly short supply nationwide in the coming years. The Association of American Medical Colleges projects a shortage of 124,000 physicians by 2025. (http://services.aamc.org/publications/showfile.cfm?file=version122.pdf&prd_id=244&prv_id=299&pdf_id=122)) Universal health coverage would increase the shortfall by 25 percent, according to the organization.
New York Times |
HHS Awards $70.9 Million to States to Expand Health Insurance Coverage |
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HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced $70.9 million in grants to 13 states to support the expansion of health care coverage for their uninsured populations.
The grants are funded under the new State Health Access Program (SHAP), an outgrowth of the agency's State Planning Grant program that operated from 2000-2007. This program enabled many states to develop innovative plans that increased health insurance coverage for their uninsured residents.
www.hhs.gov |
Federal Government Eyes EHR Certification Changes |
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Washington - The Health IT Policy Committee on Aug. 14 approved recommendations to the federal government on establishing a new process for certifying electronic health records.
To be eligible for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments under the federal stimulus bill, physicians and hospitals must be able to demonstrate "meaningful use" of certified EHR technology. Federal certification means that a system is able to achieve the minimum government requirements for security, privacy and interoperability, and that the system is able to qualify the user for bonuses under meaningful use standards.
Currently, the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology is the only certifying body recognized by the federal government. But a policy committee work group noted that "considerable confusion" exists about the certification process used by CCHIT, so the panel recommends expanding the number of approved certifying bodies. CCHIT also has been criticized because it both sets criteria and certifies vendor systems, the work group noted.
Amednews.com |
Accountable Care Organizations: A New Idea for Managing Medicare |
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The goal of ACOs is to encourage physicians and hospitals to integrate care by holding them jointly responsible for Medicare quality and costs.
Many physicians who are tuned into the health system reform debate have already heard of several of the methods being discussed for changing the way the federal government delivers care. But one Medicare delivery reform term that has recently caught the attention of Congress may be a new one to most.
The accountable care organization is one of the latest designs for managing Medicare that is gaining traction among policymakers desperate to control costs and boost quality in the system. Proponents of the concept want to see it tested along with such alternatives as patient-centered medical homes, pay-for-performance and payment bundling.
Amnews.com |
Illinois Society Annual Meeting Oct. 6 |
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The Illinois Society of Interventional Pain Physicians will hold its Annual Meeting at Nick's Fishmarket O'Hare in Rosemont, IL on October 6 at 6 pm. The featured speaker will be Leo Kapural, MD of Cleveland Clinic. Other speakers include Ramsin Benyamin, MD, ASIPP President, and Tim Lubenow, MD, Illinois State Society President.
Click here for more information
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Copyright © 2008
American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians ®
81 Lakeview Drive, Paducah, KY 42001
Phone 270.554.9412, Fax 270.554.5394
E-mail asipp@asipp.org
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