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ASNR Trainee Award...
September 24, 2011
The ASNR Trainee Award was developed to recognize the outstanding work performed by fellows, residents, or medical students, based on their Annual Meeting abstract submission and oral presentation. The 2011 recipient of the $1,000 honoraria is Seymur Gahramanov, M.D., from Oregon Health and Science University for his presentation, "Tumor Blood Volume Estimation Using Perfusion MR Imaging Is More Consistent with Iron Oxide Blood Pool Agent Ferumoxytol than Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents in Both Clinical and Preclinical Studies."
Congratulations to Dr. Gahramanov!
Nominations for 2012 Awards – DEADLINE is September 30, 2011...
September 2, 2011
The ASNR is seeking nominations for the 2012 Gold Medal Award and the Foundation Outstanding Contributions in Research Award. Only Senior members may nominate a candidate for the Gold Medal Award. For information on each award, and the criteria, please follow the links. Only Senior members may nominate a candidate for the Gold Medal Award.
- Gold Medal Award Criteria (only Senior members may nominate)
- Outstanding Contributions in Research Award Criteria (all ASNR members may nominate)
The deadline for nominations is 9:00 AM Central Time, Friday, September 30, 2011. All nominations must be sent electronically, as indicated in the instructions.
Both awards will be presented at the 50th Annual Meeting in New York City, April 21-26, 2011.
The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issues new proposals...
August 31, 2011
The Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has several proposals pending that have important implications for Neuroradiology. ASNR submitted a letter to CMS, commenting on several of the proposals that are of interest to Neuroradiology. We present a summary below, and you can read the full letter here. Two of these, while important, are technical issues. The third, a proposed major reduction in professional payment reduction for second and subsequent services performed during the same session, could have serious consequences for the availability of imaging services for these patients.
In order to achieve informed rule making, CMS needs the input of knowledgeable people who can provide expert input. The letter was a collaborative effort of ASNR Clinical Practice Committee Leaders: Dr. Robert Barr, Dr. William Donovan, Dr. Joshua Hirsch, Dr. David Seidenwurm, Dr. Gregory Nicola, and ASNR staff, and signed on behalf of the ASNR by Dr. David Hackney, in his capacity as President.
The work of these members on this, and with the American Medical Association, the CPT editorial panel, and the RUC are crucial to appropriate use of Neuroradiology for our patients. On behalf of the Society, I thank these members for their work on these important and ongoing issues. I also encourage other Senior Members to volunteer to help on the ASNR CPC, and to join, or maintain membership in, the AMA.
Here is a short summary of the CMS proposals that the ASNR comment letter addresses and the positions that the ASNR is taking:
- Proposed Expansion of Multiple Procedure Payment Reduction (MPPR) Rule: CMS is proposing a 50% payment reduction for the professional component of advanced imaging services for the second and subsequent service administered to the same patient, during the same session.
- ASNR is opposing the MPPR expansion for the following reasons:
- Each Image Requires Individual Interpretation
- Actual Efficiency Gains are Much Lower than 50 Percent
- GAO and MedPAC Recommendations Based on Flawed Assumptions
- MedPAC Recommended that CMS should Analyze Efficiencies and Suggested that Efficiencies May Vary by Image Type
- Concerns that Proposal is Influenced by Confirmation Bias
- Proposal of 50 Percent Arbitrary
- No Data Suggesting that there are Any Efficiency Gains in Physician Liability Exposure
- Duplicative Payment Reduction
- Five-Year Review Proposal: CMS currently has a formal five-year review. The Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) also has an annual review for CPT codes. This annual review covers 5-year review issues, including misvalued codes. CMS has proposed to eliminate the formal five-year review, as it believes this to be duplicative of the annual review. ASNR agrees with this proposal.
- Radiology Physician Quality Research System (PQRS) Proposed Measures Group: ASNR welcomes the proposed PQRS measures group, and makes following suggestions:
- More specific name for measures group
- Reportable by both the claims-based and registry-based methods (instead of only registry)
- Consider dividing into two smaller measures groups (as the proposal has 10 individual measures)
- Make each individual measure that comprises the measures group also stand-alone individual measures
Sincerely,
David B. Hackney, M.D., FACR
ASNR President
ASNR Abstracts Submission Site Opens...
August 31, 2011
The American Society of Neuroradiology (ASNR) invites you to submit presentation abstracts for the
ASNR 50th Annual Meeting, April 23 - 26, 2012
New York Hilton
New York, New York
SUBMISSION DEADLINE:
Friday, October 28, 2011 - 5:00pm Pacific Standard Time (PST)
Online Submission Site
Click here to go to the ASNR Online Abstract Submission Site
Call for Abstracts
To view the PDF of the Call for Abstracts, please click here.
Brain Attack Coalition Upates Recommendations for Primary Stroke Centers
August 4, 2011
The Brain Attack Coalition, a group that includes ASNR as a member, has updated its recommendations for Primary Stroke Centers. More information is available in an NIH press release here: http://www.nih.gov/news/health/aug2011/ninds-25.htm. The Brain Attack Coalition maintains a website at http://www.stroke-site.org.
Maintaining ASNR's Seat at the Table
August 4, 2011
The ASNR seat in the American Medical Association House of Delegates, (HOD) is at risk.
In April of 2012, the ASNR will celebrate its 50th Anniversary. In June of 2012, the grace period for extension of representation in the AMA HOD to societies lacking sufficient AMA membership WILL EXPIRE. The AMA is, by far, the most influential physician organization in shaping healthcare policy, and the AMA will retain that position with or without the ASNR.
Maintaining our seat is critical to ensure that Neuroradiologists participate in the evolution of healthcare in the United States. The AMA plays a central role in healthcare advocacy and in the reimbursement system, including the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Editorial Panel, and the Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC). There are several pressing issues facing American medicine and representation at the AMA is required to ensure that Neuroradiologists contribute their expertise to these discussions. If Neuroradiologists are to have a say in the future of healthcare, then we must have a voice in the AMA HOD.
These issues include:
- Proposal for an independent payment advisory board (IPAB) with a non-physician composition
- Proposals for drastic cuts in Medicare,
- No Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) solution,
- Discussion of imaging-specific cuts, for example Multiple Procedure Payment Reduction (MPPR)
- Regular work of the CPT and the RUC.
Based on current statistics, without action on our part, the ASNR will lose its seat in June. For ASNR to maintain its seat in the HOD, at least 25 percent of Senior members must be members of the AMA. Currently, we are just over 14 percent!
Senior Member Action Items:
- I urge those ASNR Senior members who are not members of the American Medical Association (AMA) to join the AMA. To join the AMA, visit http://www.ama-assn.org/go/join
- If you are an AMA member, please be sure to renew your AMA membership for 2012 when you receive your renewal notice from the AMA.
- Designate the ASNR as the national medical specialty society that represents you in the AMA HOD.
This is your opportunity to help shape health care policy and strengthen the perspective of Neuroradiologists in medicine's most influential organization. ACT NOW - DON'T DELAY!
Sincerely,
David B. Hackney, M.D., FACR
ASNR President
ASNR Presents Annual Meeting How-To Session Webcasts
August 1, 2011
Now you can view the 2011 Annual Meeting How-To Sessions via ASNR's on-demand webcasts. ASNR thanks our sponsors for their support of the Annual Meeting and for making these sessions possible. Choose from the list of sessions below to watch the programming (Adobe Flash player required).
President's Message
June 16, 2011
To all those who joined us at our 49th Annual Meeting in Seattle, thank you for making it a success. I would particularly like to thank the members of the Program Committee, who gave so much of their time to selecting speakers and designing sessions and to the ASNR staff, especially Lora Tannehill and Valerie Geisendorfer, who made the entire event run so smoothly. Mark you calendars now for our 50th Anniversary Meeting, April 21-26, 2012 in New York.
As you heard in Carolyn Meltzer's Presidential Address, we will be enhancing our online presence over the next few months. Among our first priorities will be rolling out even more educational resources. Although the MOC and SAM sessions from the Seattle meeting are yet to be added, there is already an extensive list of free offerings. If you have not done so, log on to the ASNR site as a member, go to eCME and check out the SAM courses and the full complement of MOCs from the 2009 and 2010 Annual Meetings. Nonmembers can register and view this content on a pay-per-view basis. More to come!
David Hackney