Health care reform overview: premium subsidies to employers, reinsurance and tax changes
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law comprehensive health care reform, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Although the constitutionality of the law is still being challenged in the courts, it is important for members to be aware of how the law may affect your practice. Over the next several weeks, the AASM Weekly Update is including a synopsis of certain provisions in the bill. This week’s edition will focus on premium subsidies to employers, reinsurance program and tax changes related to health insurance.
Sleep medicine specialty code delayed until April 2012
In January, the AASM announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved the establishment of a physician specialty code for sleep medicine. The original approval letter from CMS indicated that the code would be established after October 2011. In an email received Thursday September 8, staff from the CMS Provider Enrollment Operations Group notified the AASM that the establishment of the specialty code has been delayed. CMS staff cited system implementation issues, which will prevent the code from being established until April 2012. The AASM will continue to keep members updated regarding this important issue via the Weekly Update. Once the specialty code has been established, members will be provided information about how to change their specialty information with CMS.
Los Angeles Times, New York Post report on economic impact of insomnia
Last week, multiple news outlets including the Los Angeles Times and the New York Post reported that insomnia is costing the U.S. $63.2 billion in lost productivity. The average worker lost 11.3 days, or $2,280 because of insomnia. Most of the lost productivity due to insomnia was traced to workers who report to work, but are unproductive rather than absences. The reports were based on findings published in the Sept. issue of SLEEP.
Reminder: NIH sleep and social environment grant application due Sept. 30
The due date is approaching for Research Project Grant (R21) applications that propose to investigate the reciprocal interactions of the processes of sleep and circadian regulation and function with behavioral and social environmental processes. The grant (RFA-HD-12-204) offers the opportunity to link social environment factors that shape sleep behaviors with the direct neurobehavioral and circadian biology effects of sleep processes on individuals in the context of their social milieu.
Apply for Research Project Grant (R01) on decision making
The Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued a funding opportunity announcement (RFA-MH-12-130) for research that increases the understanding of basic cognitive, affective, motivational and social processes that influence decision making. “Basic Research on Decision Making: Cognitive, Affective and Development Perspectives” encourages researchers to explore the interactions among the psychological, neurobiological and behavioral processes in decision making and the mediating or moderating influences of genetics, physiology, the social environment and culture. Applications are due Jan. 18, 2012.
Health care reform overview: the individual mandate, employer requirements and the expansion of public programs
On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law comprehensive health care reform, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Although the constitutionality of the law is still being challenged in the courts, it is important for members to be aware of how the law may affect your practice. Over the next several weeks, the AASM will provide a synopsis of certain provisions in the bill. This week will focus on the individual mandate, employer requirements, and expansion of program provisions in the law. Visit the AASM website to view part one of the health care reform synopsis.
Super committee debt panel holds first meeting
The bipartisan, bicameral debt panel created by the recent budget agreement will held its first meeting on Thursday, Sept. 8. The first public hearing will be Sept. 13. As part of the recent debt deal, the panel must develop and pass by the end of November at least $1.5 trillion in federal spending cuts over 10 years. Failure to do so would trigger a series of across-the-board cuts. Medicaid would be exempt from those cuts, and Medicare is protected from deep spending cuts. However, the deficit panel is not bound by those stipulations. View the full article on the AASM website for a list of deadlines for the panel.
AASM acknowledges September contributions to the ISR Testing Program
Each month a new set of 200 consecutive epochs from a sleep record is posted online for the AASM Inter-scorer Reliability Testing Program. This convenient online program provides sleep centers, educational programs and research labs with the opportunity to compare the scoring ability of their staff and students with the AASM Gold Standard Scorer. For the September ISR Testing Program, the AASM gratefully acknowledges Nihon Kohden America for contributing software, The Institute of Sleep Medicine - DuPage Medical Group for providing sleep records, and Dr. Shalini Manchanda for serving as the second gold standard. Their participation in the AASM’s effort to provide a national standard for sleep scoring is greatly appreciated.
Deadlines are approaching for several AASM courses
Deadlines are approaching for several upcoming AASM Sleep Education Series courses held at the AASM national office in Darien, IL (a suburb of Chicago). On Friday, Sept. 16, the AASM will host a Compliance Program Development Workshop to provide physicians and coding staff with information to perform a self audit and develop a compliance program. The last day to register for this course is Wednesday, Sept. 14. In October, the AASM will host two one-day Workshops in Sleep Medicine. The workshop on Saturday, Oct. 15, will cover topics related to Portable Monitoring ranging from patient identification to scoring of portable studies. On Sunday, Oct. 16, a CPAP Adherence workshop will explore aspects of non-adherence and offer suggestions for improving compliance. The advanced registration deadline for both workshops is Friday, Sept. 16.
Last chance to register for popular Interpreting Sleep Studies courses
Registration for the AASM’s Interpreting Sleep Studies courses will end Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2011. Individuals interested in attending one of these courses, to be held at the AASM National Office in Darien, IL (a suburb of Chicago), on the Sept. 23-24 or Sept. 25-26 must register on or before this date; on-site registration will not be accepted. Plan on attending this course if you are looking to review topics related to the interpretation of sleep studies including clinical signs, indications for testing, interpretation of tests and development of treatment plans. The case-based course will provide individuals preparing for the 2011 sleep medicine board exam with an excellent review of sleep study interpretation.
JCSM will be an online-only publication in 2012
The Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (JCSM), the official peer-reviewed publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), is a free benefit of AASM membership and a valuable educational tool for individuals interested in the clinical practice of sleep medicine. The JCSM Editorial Board remains committed to publishing relevant science for its readers, but must also address increasing printing and postage costs. Starting with the 2012 volume year, JCSM will transition to an online-only resource. AASM members will enjoy full access to the current online issue and journal archives and may choose to purchase Kindle versions or printed copies of the journal
CMS publishes final rule on Electronic Prescribing (eRx) Incentive Program
In the Sept. 6 Federal Register, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CSM) published a final rule describing changes to the eRx Incentive Program. Beginning in 2012, providers who do not successfully prescribe electronically per CMS requirements will receive a penalty, also known as a payment adjustment, of -1 percent of allowable charges. This adjustment is projected to increase to -1.5 percent in 2013 and -2 percent in 2014.
Providers who believe they cannot meet the requirements of the eRx incentive program due to hardship can apply for exemption from the eRx program. Major changes to the eRx program, as outlined in the final rule, include the addition of new hardship exemption categories as well as an extension of the deadline to submit a hardship exemption request. The exemption deadline is now Nov. 1, 2011.
The AASM Recognizes Its Top Member Recruiters – September 2011
Congratulations to the AASM’s top Member-Get-A-Member Campaign recruiters for the month of August. These individuals are contributing to the growth of the organization by reaching out to their professional colleagues and encouraging them to join the AASM. For each new member recruited, these individuals will receive a $15 Recognition of Excellence Money (REM) Voucher that can be used toward AASM resources including product purchases, course registrations and more.
HypnoGram: The APSS
The APSS is a partnership between the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society. It was formed in 2002 and has its own set of bylaws. What does the APSS do? It has two main functions: The APSS administers our annual scientific meeting, which is now known as the SLEEP Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, and it produces the journal SLEEP.
About half of U.S. adults predicted to be obese by 2030
A new study in The Lancet suggests that without intervention, U.S. obesity rates will increase dramatically in the coming decades. By 2030, as many as 164 million Americans could be obese. In that time, the obesity rate for men is projected to rise from 32 percent to 50 percent and from 35 percent to 45-52 percent for women. Health care costs related to conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer would also rise.
NHLBI announces diversity funding opportunity for sleep disorders researchers
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) issued a funding opportunity announcement (RFA-HL-12-032) for Training Program for Institutions That Promote Diversity. This Institutional National Research Service Award (T32) supports students and postdoctoral trainees at non-research intensive institutions focused on serving diverse communities that are not well represented in NIH-funded research. The application due date is Oct. 26, 2011.
NIH-Oxford researchers map gene expression in mouse brain
A study in the Aug. 25 issue of the journal Neuron maps the activity of genes in the cerebral cortex of mice. Researchers from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), part of the National Institutes of Health and from Oxford University created an atlas of the more than 11,000 genes in the six layers of brain cells that make up the cerebral cortex. The atlas of gene activity in mouse brain is available in an interactive format online.
NIH partners with U.S. Department of Defense for database on traumatic brain injuries
The National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Defense announced the Federal Interagency Traumatic Brain Injury Research (FITBIR) database earlier this week. The database is intended to accelerate research on brain injury treatment and diagnosis, and will house new data, link to current databases and allow comparison of results across studies.
NIH releases 2011-2012 Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series schedule
A full roster of speakers for the 2011-2012 Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series was made available by the NIH. The first presentation is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011 at 3 p.m. EDT, and will feature Dr. Carlos Bustamante, a Professor of Physics, Chemistry and Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Each following week at 3 p.m., EST, leading biomedical investigators will present their latest findings in a live webcast. Learn more about the Wednesday Afternoon Lecture Series on the NIH website.
CMS provides clarification in response to AASM concerns regarding CBRs
In June, the AASM informed members of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) providing Comparative Billing Reports (CBR) nationally to the highest frequency billers of sleep medicine services to educate providers regarding proper billing practices. Later, the AASM sent a letter to CMS outlining several concerns about how the CBR analysis was performed and requesting a new CBR analysis be performed two years following the establishment of the sleep medicine designation by CMS.
This week, the AASM received a response from CMS that provides additional information and clarification regarding provider billing, peer groupings, and future design and methodology development based on the sleep medicine specialty designation. It is worthwhile to note the One PI Program reported that 90 percent of providers in the study billed 192 or less services.
Advanced registration deadline for AASM Pharmacology Course is approaching
On October 1–2, 2011, the AASM will host a course at the AASM national office in Darien, Illinois (a Chicago suburb) entitled Pharmacology and Sleep Medicine. Pharmacology has been designated as a medical content category for the 2011 American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) sleep medicine certification exam; individuals preparing to take this exam can register for this course to receive a review of topics which may be covered on this exam. The advanced registration deadline for the Pharmacology and Sleep Medicine course is Friday, September 2, 2011; register before this date to save on registration fees.
Two full-day workshops in sleep medicine scheduled: Portable Monitoring and CPAP Adherence
The AASM has scheduled two small-group, full-day workshops at the AASM national office in Darien, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago). On Saturday, October 15, 2011, faculty, led by course chair Richard Berry, MD, will discuss issues related to portable monitoring including a review of current AASM guidelines, patient selection and scoring, as well as a discussion about portable monitoring from the viewpoint of different healthcare systems. Following this workshop on Sunday, October 16, 2011, Shalini Paruthi, MD and faculty will take an in-depth look at the topic of CPAP adherence for the treatment of OSA. Space for each workshop is limited. Individuals who wish to attend both workshops will save more than 25% when you register for both meetings on or before the September 16, 2011 advanced registration deadline.
Aging eyes linked to sleepless nights, new study shows
A natural yellowing of the eye lens that absorbs blue light has been linked to sleep disorders in a group of test volunteers, according to a study in the Sept. 1 issue of the journal Sleep. As this type of lens discoloration worsened with age, so did the risk of insomnia.
Insomnia costing U.S. workforce $63.2 billion a year in lost productivity, study shows
Insomnia is costing the average U.S. worker 11.3 days, or $2,280 in lost productivity every year, according to a study in the September 1 issue of the journal SLEEP. As a nation, the total cost is 252.7 days and $63.2 billion.
ASMF announces the call for proposals for the 2012 grant cycle
The ASMF is pleased to offer its fifth year of grant funding for the Physician Scientist Training Award (PSTA). For a fourth year, the ASMF also is requesting applications for the ABSM Junior Faculty Research Award, which was established with an endowment of $2 million from the American Board of Sleep Medicine. Candidates must complete the application process before Monday, Oct. 17, 2011, to be considered.