ACPM Headlines 2/8/13 - American College of Preventive Medicine

ACPM Headlines 2/8/13

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1. CMS RELEASES PHYSICIAN SUNSHINE ACT FINAL RULE

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced a final rule that will increase public awareness of financial relationships between drug and device manufacturers and certain health care providers. Called the "National Physician Payment Transparency Program: Open Payments,” this is one of many steps in the Affordable Care Act designed to create greater transparency in the health care market.

This rule codifies provisions that require manufacturers of drugs, devices, biological, and medical supplies covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to report payments or other transfers of value they make to physicians and teaching hospitals to CMS. CMS will post that data to a public website. The final rule also requires manufacturers and group purchasing organizations (GPOs) to disclose to CMS physician ownership or investment interests.

Attending Preventive Medicine 2013 in Phoenix? We invite you to attend the Partners for Healthy Dialogues breakfast, co-hosted by ACPM & PhRMA. ACPM Committee on Ethics Chair James Tacci, MD, MPH, FACPM and Executive Director Michael Barry, along with PhRMA representatives, will present on the topic and answer questions regarding this ruling.

2. PREVENTIVE MEDICINE 2013: ON THE CUTTING EDGE OF INNOVATION!

Several innovative, efficient and green initiatives will be unveiled at the upcoming PM2013 conference:

Mobile Meeting App
Electronic Evaluation
Online MOC Quizzes

Reporting your CME and MOC credits for PM2013 has never been easier! Attendees will complete an electronic evaluation and online MOC quizzes. Paper evaluations/MOC questions will not be provided.

Additionally, attendees will have the opportunity to experience PM2013 through the all-new mobile meeting app. Get on the go and download PM2013 to your mobile device now! The mobile app is password-protected. Your username is the email address used when you registered for the conference; and your password is PM2013.

3. USPSTF POSTS DRAFT RESEARCH PLANS ON BEHAVIORAL COUNSELING FOR PUBLIC COMMENT

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has posted two draft research plans for public comment: behavioral counseling to promote a healthy diet and physical activity for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention in persons with known risk factors for CVD, and behavioral counseling to prevent sexually transmitted infections.

The Task Force believes that outside input will help ensure that final recommendations are valid, reliable, and useful to clinicians, patients, and family members. Comments may be submitted at http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/tfcomment.htm until February 25, 2013.

ACPM News

4. ACPM Board of Regents giving: All In!

As the ACPM President, I am pleased to share the news that 100% of our Board members contributed a financial gift to the College in 2012! I hope you will consider joining us this year. Giving has a tremendous impact.

As an ACPM member, you know that ACPM is the leading organization representing preventive medicine physicians. Your generosity enables us to develop/enhance programming, support opportunities for future leaders in preventive medicine, increase member recruitment efforts, and enhance the visibility of both the College and specialty. Therefore, I ask that you consider making a donation in 2013.

Every gift is critical—regardless of the amount. Simply visit our website to make your donation today. You also can submit your donation by check to ACPM, 455 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20001. You will receive an acknowledgement and receipt for your donation. Your donation to ACPM is 100% tax deductible under the full extent of the law. ACPM’s Federal Tax Identification Number is 23-1722119.

ACPM looks forward to your continued involvement in advancing the College and the specialty of preventive medicine.

Miriam Alexander, MD, MPH, FACPM
President

5. ACPM RESPONDS TO PROPOSED WORKPLACE WELLNESS REGULATIONS

ACPM submitted official comments to the Department of Labor in response to a proposed rule regarding "Incentives for Nondiscriminatory Wellness Programs in Group Health Plans.” The rule seeks to establish parameters and standards that govern the design of employer-sponsored workplace wellness programs.

The ACPM letter noted, "Although evidence or practice based applications of workplace wellness programs would be beneficial in the development of reasonable design standards for health-contingent wellness programs, there is little consensus as to best practice as described in numerous Cochrane and systematic reviews. Thus, evidence and practice based literature, along with other evidence based resources such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Workplace Health Promotion, Healthy People 2020 Workplace Wellness, and the Partnership for Prevention Workplace Health websites should be used for guidance in possible workplace wellness programs.”

6. STUDY PUBLISHED IN AJPM SELECTED BY RWJF AS ONE OF 2012’S MOST INFLUENTIAL

A new study by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia published in the January edition of American Journal of Preventive Medicine has made the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Top 20 list of most influential research articles supported by the Foundation. The study shows that New Jersey's law requiring novice drivers to display a red decal on their license plates has prevented more than 1,600 crashes and helped police officers enforce regulations unique to new drivers. RWJF has produced this YouTube video to explain the study’s findings.

The article is now in the running for RWJF’s Top 5 list. You can access RWJF’s 2012 Year in Research campaign and vote for this article at http://ow.ly/huw5K.

Policy and Practice

7. CLANCY STEPS DOWN AS DIRECTOR OF AGENCY FOR HEALTHCARE RESEARCH AND QUALITY

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced Carolyn Clancy, MD is leaving the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) after serving as director for the past 10 years. Her departure will come less than a year after a House Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations bill would have eliminated AHRQ completely.

In her announcement, Sec. Sebelius credits Dr. Clancy with overseeing the country’s first annual reports on quality, safety and disparities in care, as well as other efforts promoting patient safety. "Moreover, under Carolyn’s leadership, AHRQ has been instrumental in cross-cutting departmental initiatives, from the development of the Affordable Care Act National Quality Strategy to the launch of CHIPRA provisions on assessing children’s quality of care,” Sebelius wrote.

8. SEN. HARKIN INTRODUCES HEALTHY LIFESTYLES BILL

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chair of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, has introduced the "Healthier Lifestyles and Prevention America (HeLP) Act” that outlines multifaceted approaches to promote health in schools, communities, and the work place. First introduced by Sen. Harkin in 2007, the HeLP Act seeks to improve the health of kids in schools, facilitates healthier communities and workplaces, encourages responsible marketing and consumer awareness, and calls for expanded coverage of preventive services while providing increased research and surveillance programs that target breastfeeding, mental health and substance abuse.

For more information, please visit Sen. Harkin’s official website.

9. FDA SEEKS COMMENTS ON CHANGES TO SMOKELESS TOBACCO WARNINGS

As a result of its new tobacco regulation authority, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seeking public comments on proposed changes to smokeless tobacco warnings. The "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act” requires that the FDA issue regulations that dictate new health warning labels that must appear on smokeless tobacco products to promote greater "understanding of the risks associated with the use of smokeless tobacco products.”

Comments supported by scientific evidence will be accepted through regulations.gov until April 1, 2013.

Research and Reports

10. STATES ARE FAILING TO INVEST IN TOBACCO PREVENTION

States are failing to invest in preventing and reducing tobacco use, according to the State of Tobacco Control 2013 Report recently released by the American Lung Association. Specifically, the report notes that "State governments continue to look the other way as they fail to invest billions of dollars from tobacco taxes and tobacco settlement payments that should be directed to effectively prevent kids from starting to use tobacco and help current tobacco users quit.”

The report tracks progress on key tobacco control policies at the state and federal levels and assigns grades to each state based on tobacco control laws and regulations. The report presents an assessment of tobacco control programs, prevention and control spending, excise tax rates, analysis of smoke free air and cessation programs, and statistics on smoking attributable deaths. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the federal government are graded to determine if tobacco control laws are adequately protecting the populations they serve from the health and economic burden that results from tobacco use.

11. A HEALTHIER AMERICA 2013: STRATEGIES TO MOVE FROM SICK CARE TO HEALTH CARE IN FOUR YEARS

The Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) has released A Healthier America 2013: Strategies to Move from Sick Care to Health Care in Four Years, a report that identifies high-impact recommendations to prioritize prevention and improve health in America. The top two policy priority areas are advancing the nation’s public health system and building partnerships within and outside the health field.

The report responds to the fact that more than half of Americans are living with one or more serious chronic diseases, many of which could be prevented, and for the first time in US history, children could live shorter and less healthy lives than their parents. The report stresses innovative approaches and notes the importance of building partnerships with a wide range of sectors and organizations. The report contains more than 15 examples of case studies that include recommendations from the report.

12. WEB INFORMATION ON MEDICATION SAFE TO TAKE DURING PREGNANCY IS INCONSISTENT

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found the accuracy of web-based medication lists identified as safe to use during pregnancy to be inconsistent. Safe Lists for Medications in Pregnancy: Inadequate Evidence Base and Inconsistent Guidance from Web-Based Information, 2011 notes that many women are obtaining health information from the internet before consulting a health care provider. CDC examined and assessed the quality and quantity of scientific evidence that supports the inclusion of each medication, and identified these key findings:

There exists inadequate evidence and inconsistent guidance on websites that list medications reported to be safe for use during pregnancy.
In the face of inadequate evidence and inconsistent guidance, women and healthcare providers visiting these websites are being reassured that fetal exposure to these medications is safe.
Half of the websites did not recommend that women consult a healthcare provider before using any medication during pregnancy, and
The wide availability of "safe” medication lists suggests consumer demand for information on this subject.

Announcements

13. PCORI SEEKS EXPERTS TO SERVE ON ADVISORY PANELS

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is accepting applications for its first four Advisory Panels to engage stakeholders as PCORI develops its research agenda. PCORI is seeking individuals from a variety of backgrounds including "patients, caregivers, clinicians, researchers, other members of the health care community and the general public.” The initial Advisory Panels focus on Assessment of Prevention, Diagnosis, and Treatment Options; Improving Healthcare Systems; Addressing Disparities; and Patient Engagement.

The deadline to submit applications is Monday, March 4, 2013.

14. MEMBER IN THE NEWS: SHARON HULL

Sharon K. Hull, MD, MPH, FAAFP, FACPM, has accepted the position of division chief of family medicine in the Department of Community and Family Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, effective April 1. Dr. Hull currently is professor of family and community medicine at Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED), and director of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Collaborative at Summa Health System.

In her new role as division chief, Dr. Hull will be responsible for administration of the Duke Family Medicine Clinic and all related operations; development and implementation of a sponsored research agenda for the division; oversight of all divisional training and education, including the Family Medicine residency and Pre-Doctoral program; and serving as the interface between the division and other entities within and outside of Duke University, particularly in the community of Durham, N.C.

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