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How does the Quality Payment Program affect you?
AGA asks Congress and CMS to continue to implement the Quality Payment Program (QPP) in a way that maximizes flexibility and success for you and your Medicare patients.
Most gastroenterologists participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), which means how the QPP is implemented impacts the entire GI profession. The QPP replaced the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula in 2015 when the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) was signed into law. The QPP is comprised of two tracks: MIPS and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (Advanced APMs).
CMS has designated 2017 and 2018 as transition years to allow providers to learn about the QPP and to gradually increase their preparedness for MIPS.
Congress also recently acted to provide CMS additional flexibility with respect to QPP and MIPS implementation, including:
• Excluding Medicare Part B drug costs from MIPS payment adjustments.
• Eliminating improvement scoring for the cost performance category for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS to weight the cost performance category at less than 30 percent, but not less than 10 percent for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS flexibility in setting the performance threshold for MIPS in years two through five to ensure a gradual and incremental transition to the performance threshold set at the mean or median for the sixth year.
QPP implementation is a top priority for AGA to ensure that the value of specialty care is recognized. Learn more on our website www.gastro.org/QPP.
AGA asks Congress and CMS to continue to implement the Quality Payment Program (QPP) in a way that maximizes flexibility and success for you and your Medicare patients.
Most gastroenterologists participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), which means how the QPP is implemented impacts the entire GI profession. The QPP replaced the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula in 2015 when the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) was signed into law. The QPP is comprised of two tracks: MIPS and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (Advanced APMs).
CMS has designated 2017 and 2018 as transition years to allow providers to learn about the QPP and to gradually increase their preparedness for MIPS.
Congress also recently acted to provide CMS additional flexibility with respect to QPP and MIPS implementation, including:
• Excluding Medicare Part B drug costs from MIPS payment adjustments.
• Eliminating improvement scoring for the cost performance category for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS to weight the cost performance category at less than 30 percent, but not less than 10 percent for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS flexibility in setting the performance threshold for MIPS in years two through five to ensure a gradual and incremental transition to the performance threshold set at the mean or median for the sixth year.
QPP implementation is a top priority for AGA to ensure that the value of specialty care is recognized. Learn more on our website www.gastro.org/QPP.
AGA asks Congress and CMS to continue to implement the Quality Payment Program (QPP) in a way that maximizes flexibility and success for you and your Medicare patients.
Most gastroenterologists participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), which means how the QPP is implemented impacts the entire GI profession. The QPP replaced the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula in 2015 when the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) was signed into law. The QPP is comprised of two tracks: MIPS and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (Advanced APMs).
CMS has designated 2017 and 2018 as transition years to allow providers to learn about the QPP and to gradually increase their preparedness for MIPS.
Congress also recently acted to provide CMS additional flexibility with respect to QPP and MIPS implementation, including:
• Excluding Medicare Part B drug costs from MIPS payment adjustments.
• Eliminating improvement scoring for the cost performance category for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS to weight the cost performance category at less than 30 percent, but not less than 10 percent for the second through fifth years of MIPS.
• Allowing CMS flexibility in setting the performance threshold for MIPS in years two through five to ensure a gradual and incremental transition to the performance threshold set at the mean or median for the sixth year.
QPP implementation is a top priority for AGA to ensure that the value of specialty care is recognized. Learn more on our website www.gastro.org/QPP.
AGA opens GI Patient Center to the public
We’re proud to announce the public launch of the AGA GI Patient Center, an online hub for digestive health information developed by specialists, for patients. The GI Patient Center – previously only accessible by AGA member physicians – now directly provides patients with trusted information on a variety of GI conditions and procedures.
Browse the GI Patient Center, which includes information on more than 30 topics, available in both English and Spanish. All AGA patient education was written and reviewed by leading gastroenterologists, and developed with health literacy in mind.
You can print this information for your practice, email patients a link, include a link on your website – whatever is needed to ensure your patients are getting trusted health information about their condition, treatment, or procedure.
To get started, visit patient.gastro.org.
We’re proud to announce the public launch of the AGA GI Patient Center, an online hub for digestive health information developed by specialists, for patients. The GI Patient Center – previously only accessible by AGA member physicians – now directly provides patients with trusted information on a variety of GI conditions and procedures.
Browse the GI Patient Center, which includes information on more than 30 topics, available in both English and Spanish. All AGA patient education was written and reviewed by leading gastroenterologists, and developed with health literacy in mind.
You can print this information for your practice, email patients a link, include a link on your website – whatever is needed to ensure your patients are getting trusted health information about their condition, treatment, or procedure.
To get started, visit patient.gastro.org.
We’re proud to announce the public launch of the AGA GI Patient Center, an online hub for digestive health information developed by specialists, for patients. The GI Patient Center – previously only accessible by AGA member physicians – now directly provides patients with trusted information on a variety of GI conditions and procedures.
Browse the GI Patient Center, which includes information on more than 30 topics, available in both English and Spanish. All AGA patient education was written and reviewed by leading gastroenterologists, and developed with health literacy in mind.
You can print this information for your practice, email patients a link, include a link on your website – whatever is needed to ensure your patients are getting trusted health information about their condition, treatment, or procedure.
To get started, visit patient.gastro.org.
Announcing the 2018 Section Research Mentor Award recipients
The AGA Institute Council Section Research Mentor Award acknowledges AGA members for their achievements as outstanding mentors in a specific area of research. We are pleased to announce the 2018 recipients who will be recognized by each of the 13 AGA Institute Council sections during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018. Congratulations to these exceptional mentors!
AGA Institute Council 2018 Section Research Mentor Award recipients
Basic & Clinical Intestinal Disorders
Gary D. Wu, MD
Cellular & Molecular Gastroenterology
Charalabos Pothoulakis, MD
Clinical Practice
Amnon Sonnenberg, MD, MSc
Esophageal, Gastric & Duodenal Disorders
Nicholas J. Shaheen, MD, MPH, AGAF
Gastrointestinal Oncology
Randall W. Burt, MD, AGAF
Growth, Development & Child Health
Deborah L. Gumucio, PhD
Imaging, Endoscopy & Advanced Technology
Michael B. Wallace, MD, MPH, AGAF
Immunology, Microbiology & Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Claudio Fiocchi, MD
Liver & Biliary
Scott L. Friedman, MD
Microbiome & Microbial Diseases in the Gastrointestinal Tract
Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD
Neurogastroenterology & Motility
Richard W. McCallum, MD, AGAF
Obesity, Metabolism & Nutrition
Lee M. Kaplan, MD, PhD, AGAF
Pancreatic Disorders
Suresh T. Chari, MD
The AGA Institute Council Section Research Mentor Award acknowledges AGA members for their achievements as outstanding mentors in a specific area of research. We are pleased to announce the 2018 recipients who will be recognized by each of the 13 AGA Institute Council sections during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018. Congratulations to these exceptional mentors!
AGA Institute Council 2018 Section Research Mentor Award recipients
Basic & Clinical Intestinal Disorders
Gary D. Wu, MD
Cellular & Molecular Gastroenterology
Charalabos Pothoulakis, MD
Clinical Practice
Amnon Sonnenberg, MD, MSc
Esophageal, Gastric & Duodenal Disorders
Nicholas J. Shaheen, MD, MPH, AGAF
Gastrointestinal Oncology
Randall W. Burt, MD, AGAF
Growth, Development & Child Health
Deborah L. Gumucio, PhD
Imaging, Endoscopy & Advanced Technology
Michael B. Wallace, MD, MPH, AGAF
Immunology, Microbiology & Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Claudio Fiocchi, MD
Liver & Biliary
Scott L. Friedman, MD
Microbiome & Microbial Diseases in the Gastrointestinal Tract
Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD
Neurogastroenterology & Motility
Richard W. McCallum, MD, AGAF
Obesity, Metabolism & Nutrition
Lee M. Kaplan, MD, PhD, AGAF
Pancreatic Disorders
Suresh T. Chari, MD
The AGA Institute Council Section Research Mentor Award acknowledges AGA members for their achievements as outstanding mentors in a specific area of research. We are pleased to announce the 2018 recipients who will be recognized by each of the 13 AGA Institute Council sections during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018. Congratulations to these exceptional mentors!
AGA Institute Council 2018 Section Research Mentor Award recipients
Basic & Clinical Intestinal Disorders
Gary D. Wu, MD
Cellular & Molecular Gastroenterology
Charalabos Pothoulakis, MD
Clinical Practice
Amnon Sonnenberg, MD, MSc
Esophageal, Gastric & Duodenal Disorders
Nicholas J. Shaheen, MD, MPH, AGAF
Gastrointestinal Oncology
Randall W. Burt, MD, AGAF
Growth, Development & Child Health
Deborah L. Gumucio, PhD
Imaging, Endoscopy & Advanced Technology
Michael B. Wallace, MD, MPH, AGAF
Immunology, Microbiology & Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Claudio Fiocchi, MD
Liver & Biliary
Scott L. Friedman, MD
Microbiome & Microbial Diseases in the Gastrointestinal Tract
Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD
Neurogastroenterology & Motility
Richard W. McCallum, MD, AGAF
Obesity, Metabolism & Nutrition
Lee M. Kaplan, MD, PhD, AGAF
Pancreatic Disorders
Suresh T. Chari, MD
Psychotherapy helps patients with chronic digestive disorders
Patients with chronic digestive disorders can better cope with their symptoms and the effects on their daily lives when they receive support from mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, according to a new AGA Clinical Practice Update, published in the April issue of Gastroenterology (gastrojournal.org). , which will help reduce patient symptom burden and health care resource utilization. These therapies are optimally delivered by mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, a field dedicated to applying effective psychological techniques to GI problems.
According to best practice advice, to help promote the use of brain-gut psychotherapies in routine GI care, gastroenterologists should:
1. Routinely assess health-related quality of life, symptom-specific anxieties, early life adversity and functional impairment related to a patient’s digestive symptoms.
2. Master patient-friendly language on the following topics: the brain–gut pathway and how this pathway can become dysregulated by any number of factors; the psychosocial risk, perpetuating and maintaining factors of GI diseases; and why the gastroenterologist is referring a patient to a mental health provider.
3. Know the structure and core features of the most effective brain–gut psychotherapies.
4. Establish a direct referral and ongoing communication pathway with one to two qualified mental health providers and assure patients that he or she will remain part of their care team.
5. Familiarize themselves with one or two neuromodulators that can be used to augment behavioral therapies when necessary.
Patients with chronic digestive disorders can better cope with their symptoms and the effects on their daily lives when they receive support from mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, according to a new AGA Clinical Practice Update, published in the April issue of Gastroenterology (gastrojournal.org). , which will help reduce patient symptom burden and health care resource utilization. These therapies are optimally delivered by mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, a field dedicated to applying effective psychological techniques to GI problems.
According to best practice advice, to help promote the use of brain-gut psychotherapies in routine GI care, gastroenterologists should:
1. Routinely assess health-related quality of life, symptom-specific anxieties, early life adversity and functional impairment related to a patient’s digestive symptoms.
2. Master patient-friendly language on the following topics: the brain–gut pathway and how this pathway can become dysregulated by any number of factors; the psychosocial risk, perpetuating and maintaining factors of GI diseases; and why the gastroenterologist is referring a patient to a mental health provider.
3. Know the structure and core features of the most effective brain–gut psychotherapies.
4. Establish a direct referral and ongoing communication pathway with one to two qualified mental health providers and assure patients that he or she will remain part of their care team.
5. Familiarize themselves with one or two neuromodulators that can be used to augment behavioral therapies when necessary.
Patients with chronic digestive disorders can better cope with their symptoms and the effects on their daily lives when they receive support from mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, according to a new AGA Clinical Practice Update, published in the April issue of Gastroenterology (gastrojournal.org). , which will help reduce patient symptom burden and health care resource utilization. These therapies are optimally delivered by mental health professionals specializing in psychogastroenterology, a field dedicated to applying effective psychological techniques to GI problems.
According to best practice advice, to help promote the use of brain-gut psychotherapies in routine GI care, gastroenterologists should:
1. Routinely assess health-related quality of life, symptom-specific anxieties, early life adversity and functional impairment related to a patient’s digestive symptoms.
2. Master patient-friendly language on the following topics: the brain–gut pathway and how this pathway can become dysregulated by any number of factors; the psychosocial risk, perpetuating and maintaining factors of GI diseases; and why the gastroenterologist is referring a patient to a mental health provider.
3. Know the structure and core features of the most effective brain–gut psychotherapies.
4. Establish a direct referral and ongoing communication pathway with one to two qualified mental health providers and assure patients that he or she will remain part of their care team.
5. Familiarize themselves with one or two neuromodulators that can be used to augment behavioral therapies when necessary.
AGA Fellows application period now open
The application period for the 2019 AGA Fellowship is now open. Members whose professional achievements demonstrate personal commitment to the field of gastroenterology and meet the AGA Fellows program criteria are encouraged to apply.
Learn more about joining this community of excellence or to how to apply online at www.gastro.org/fellowship.
AGA Fellows receive:
• The privilege of using the designation “AGAF” in professional activities.
• An official certificate and pin denoting your status.
• A listing on AGA’s website alongside esteemed peers.
• And more.
Apply and gain international recognition for your achievements when you become an AGA Fellow.
The application period for the 2019 AGA Fellowship is now open. Members whose professional achievements demonstrate personal commitment to the field of gastroenterology and meet the AGA Fellows program criteria are encouraged to apply.
Learn more about joining this community of excellence or to how to apply online at www.gastro.org/fellowship.
AGA Fellows receive:
• The privilege of using the designation “AGAF” in professional activities.
• An official certificate and pin denoting your status.
• A listing on AGA’s website alongside esteemed peers.
• And more.
Apply and gain international recognition for your achievements when you become an AGA Fellow.
The application period for the 2019 AGA Fellowship is now open. Members whose professional achievements demonstrate personal commitment to the field of gastroenterology and meet the AGA Fellows program criteria are encouraged to apply.
Learn more about joining this community of excellence or to how to apply online at www.gastro.org/fellowship.
AGA Fellows receive:
• The privilege of using the designation “AGAF” in professional activities.
• An official certificate and pin denoting your status.
• A listing on AGA’s website alongside esteemed peers.
• And more.
Apply and gain international recognition for your achievements when you become an AGA Fellow.
AGA hosted productive Hill meeting advocating for GIs
Chairman Roskam recently took over the chair of the Health Subcommittee, which has prime jurisdiction over Medicare Part B issues when Rep. Pat Tieberi, R-OH, retired. The roundtable focused on regulatory issues that impact physician practices and their ability to provide timely care to patients.
AGA and the Alliance of Specialty Medicine thanked Chairman Roskam and Congress for the technical corrections to the Quality Payment Program (QPP) that were included as part of the bipartisan budget agreement passed earlier this year that will significantly improve physicians’ ability to successfully participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) track. Because of the lack of opportunity for specialists like gastroenterologists to participate in advanced alternative payment models (APMs), most physicians will be participating in MIPS. Although Congress provided CMS with more flexibility in scoring for MIPS, we stressed to Chairman Roskam that MIPS reporting and scoring needs to be simplified to make it less administratively burdensome and costly for physicians. We also addressed the ongoing challenges regarding electronic health records (EHR) interoperability and the administrative and financial burdens it has on physician practices. This roundtable is part of one of AGA’s top advocacy issues, urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to provide relief to physicians.
AGA also raised the issue of alternative payment models and gastroenterology’s experience with developing bundles and episodes around common GI conditions. AGA stressed to Roskam the need for CMS to move forward piloting specialty payment models that have been approved by the Physician Technical Advisory Committee (PTAC) to test them in the Medicare population. The need for modernizing the Stark laws to enable physician practices to participate in alternative payment models was also discussed at the roundtable since the current Stark laws prohibit physician referral based on volume or value. AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements. The legislation would allow CMS to waive the Stark laws for physicians seeking to develop and operate APMs like what Congress allowed for accountable care organizations (ACOs). AGA believes this legislation is necessary for many of the innovative payment models developed by gastroenterologists to be implemented in the Medicare program.
Prior authorization
Prior authorization was also a major topic raised with Roskam and how it impacts all physicians regardless of where they practice. We emphasized how tremendously burdensome prior authorizations is to physicians and physician practices, and gave examples of how it often interrupts and/or delays delivery of patient care.
AGA and the alliance recommended that payors make prior authorization requirements and criteria transparent and easily accessible. We also recommended that CMS standardize and streamline prior authorization processes by Medicare Advantage and Part D plans. We also encouraged the committee to conduct oversight hearings to investigate prior authorization and utilization management practices by Medicare Advantage Organizations and Part D plans.
AGA and the alliance will continue to work with Roskam and the committees of jurisdiction to find solutions to lessen the regulatory burden on physicians that take time away from providing care to patients.
Chairman Roskam recently took over the chair of the Health Subcommittee, which has prime jurisdiction over Medicare Part B issues when Rep. Pat Tieberi, R-OH, retired. The roundtable focused on regulatory issues that impact physician practices and their ability to provide timely care to patients.
AGA and the Alliance of Specialty Medicine thanked Chairman Roskam and Congress for the technical corrections to the Quality Payment Program (QPP) that were included as part of the bipartisan budget agreement passed earlier this year that will significantly improve physicians’ ability to successfully participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) track. Because of the lack of opportunity for specialists like gastroenterologists to participate in advanced alternative payment models (APMs), most physicians will be participating in MIPS. Although Congress provided CMS with more flexibility in scoring for MIPS, we stressed to Chairman Roskam that MIPS reporting and scoring needs to be simplified to make it less administratively burdensome and costly for physicians. We also addressed the ongoing challenges regarding electronic health records (EHR) interoperability and the administrative and financial burdens it has on physician practices. This roundtable is part of one of AGA’s top advocacy issues, urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to provide relief to physicians.
AGA also raised the issue of alternative payment models and gastroenterology’s experience with developing bundles and episodes around common GI conditions. AGA stressed to Roskam the need for CMS to move forward piloting specialty payment models that have been approved by the Physician Technical Advisory Committee (PTAC) to test them in the Medicare population. The need for modernizing the Stark laws to enable physician practices to participate in alternative payment models was also discussed at the roundtable since the current Stark laws prohibit physician referral based on volume or value. AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements. The legislation would allow CMS to waive the Stark laws for physicians seeking to develop and operate APMs like what Congress allowed for accountable care organizations (ACOs). AGA believes this legislation is necessary for many of the innovative payment models developed by gastroenterologists to be implemented in the Medicare program.
Prior authorization
Prior authorization was also a major topic raised with Roskam and how it impacts all physicians regardless of where they practice. We emphasized how tremendously burdensome prior authorizations is to physicians and physician practices, and gave examples of how it often interrupts and/or delays delivery of patient care.
AGA and the alliance recommended that payors make prior authorization requirements and criteria transparent and easily accessible. We also recommended that CMS standardize and streamline prior authorization processes by Medicare Advantage and Part D plans. We also encouraged the committee to conduct oversight hearings to investigate prior authorization and utilization management practices by Medicare Advantage Organizations and Part D plans.
AGA and the alliance will continue to work with Roskam and the committees of jurisdiction to find solutions to lessen the regulatory burden on physicians that take time away from providing care to patients.
Chairman Roskam recently took over the chair of the Health Subcommittee, which has prime jurisdiction over Medicare Part B issues when Rep. Pat Tieberi, R-OH, retired. The roundtable focused on regulatory issues that impact physician practices and their ability to provide timely care to patients.
AGA and the Alliance of Specialty Medicine thanked Chairman Roskam and Congress for the technical corrections to the Quality Payment Program (QPP) that were included as part of the bipartisan budget agreement passed earlier this year that will significantly improve physicians’ ability to successfully participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) track. Because of the lack of opportunity for specialists like gastroenterologists to participate in advanced alternative payment models (APMs), most physicians will be participating in MIPS. Although Congress provided CMS with more flexibility in scoring for MIPS, we stressed to Chairman Roskam that MIPS reporting and scoring needs to be simplified to make it less administratively burdensome and costly for physicians. We also addressed the ongoing challenges regarding electronic health records (EHR) interoperability and the administrative and financial burdens it has on physician practices. This roundtable is part of one of AGA’s top advocacy issues, urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to provide relief to physicians.
AGA also raised the issue of alternative payment models and gastroenterology’s experience with developing bundles and episodes around common GI conditions. AGA stressed to Roskam the need for CMS to move forward piloting specialty payment models that have been approved by the Physician Technical Advisory Committee (PTAC) to test them in the Medicare population. The need for modernizing the Stark laws to enable physician practices to participate in alternative payment models was also discussed at the roundtable since the current Stark laws prohibit physician referral based on volume or value. AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements. The legislation would allow CMS to waive the Stark laws for physicians seeking to develop and operate APMs like what Congress allowed for accountable care organizations (ACOs). AGA believes this legislation is necessary for many of the innovative payment models developed by gastroenterologists to be implemented in the Medicare program.
Prior authorization
Prior authorization was also a major topic raised with Roskam and how it impacts all physicians regardless of where they practice. We emphasized how tremendously burdensome prior authorizations is to physicians and physician practices, and gave examples of how it often interrupts and/or delays delivery of patient care.
AGA and the alliance recommended that payors make prior authorization requirements and criteria transparent and easily accessible. We also recommended that CMS standardize and streamline prior authorization processes by Medicare Advantage and Part D plans. We also encouraged the committee to conduct oversight hearings to investigate prior authorization and utilization management practices by Medicare Advantage Organizations and Part D plans.
AGA and the alliance will continue to work with Roskam and the committees of jurisdiction to find solutions to lessen the regulatory burden on physicians that take time away from providing care to patients.
Federal spending agreement includes wins for medical community
President Trump signed a $1.3 trillion omnibus appropriations package that includes notable increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week. This funding and language is a major victory for digestive disease research and patients. AGA thanks everyone who joined our call to Congress to increase funding for research. Your advocacy matters and makes a difference!
NIH
NIH is a big winner in the omnibus and will receive $37.1 billion for fiscal year 2018, an 8.8% increase over the previous year’s funding, which represents the largest increase for NIH since the doubling period over a decade ago.
The omnibus also includes language pushed by AGA to require NIH to provide Congress with an update on the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Digestive Diseases. AGA applauds Congress for including language that will help increase digestive disease research.
Congress also included funding for young researchers and continues to take action to reduce the average age of a new NIH-supported investigator. AGA appreciates the appropriators including this language, which has been a longstanding priority of AGA in supporting young investigators and ensuring that our best and brightest scientists have the support and funding that they need to start their careers.
Language was also included that prohibits the administration from capping administrative and facility fees paid to research institutions.
The All of Us Precision Medicine initiative received an increase of $60 million and antibiotic resistance initiatives received an increase of $50 million.
Opioid funding
The bill includes $4.65 billion to address the opioid epidemic across various government agencies. NIH would receive $1 billion to research opioid addiction and alternative pain management and treatment.
CDC
The CDC would receive $8.3 billion in funding, rejecting President Trump’s call for $900 million in cuts.
President Trump signed a $1.3 trillion omnibus appropriations package that includes notable increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week. This funding and language is a major victory for digestive disease research and patients. AGA thanks everyone who joined our call to Congress to increase funding for research. Your advocacy matters and makes a difference!
NIH
NIH is a big winner in the omnibus and will receive $37.1 billion for fiscal year 2018, an 8.8% increase over the previous year’s funding, which represents the largest increase for NIH since the doubling period over a decade ago.
The omnibus also includes language pushed by AGA to require NIH to provide Congress with an update on the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Digestive Diseases. AGA applauds Congress for including language that will help increase digestive disease research.
Congress also included funding for young researchers and continues to take action to reduce the average age of a new NIH-supported investigator. AGA appreciates the appropriators including this language, which has been a longstanding priority of AGA in supporting young investigators and ensuring that our best and brightest scientists have the support and funding that they need to start their careers.
Language was also included that prohibits the administration from capping administrative and facility fees paid to research institutions.
The All of Us Precision Medicine initiative received an increase of $60 million and antibiotic resistance initiatives received an increase of $50 million.
Opioid funding
The bill includes $4.65 billion to address the opioid epidemic across various government agencies. NIH would receive $1 billion to research opioid addiction and alternative pain management and treatment.
CDC
The CDC would receive $8.3 billion in funding, rejecting President Trump’s call for $900 million in cuts.
President Trump signed a $1.3 trillion omnibus appropriations package that includes notable increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week. This funding and language is a major victory for digestive disease research and patients. AGA thanks everyone who joined our call to Congress to increase funding for research. Your advocacy matters and makes a difference!
NIH
NIH is a big winner in the omnibus and will receive $37.1 billion for fiscal year 2018, an 8.8% increase over the previous year’s funding, which represents the largest increase for NIH since the doubling period over a decade ago.
The omnibus also includes language pushed by AGA to require NIH to provide Congress with an update on the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Digestive Diseases. AGA applauds Congress for including language that will help increase digestive disease research.
Congress also included funding for young researchers and continues to take action to reduce the average age of a new NIH-supported investigator. AGA appreciates the appropriators including this language, which has been a longstanding priority of AGA in supporting young investigators and ensuring that our best and brightest scientists have the support and funding that they need to start their careers.
Language was also included that prohibits the administration from capping administrative and facility fees paid to research institutions.
The All of Us Precision Medicine initiative received an increase of $60 million and antibiotic resistance initiatives received an increase of $50 million.
Opioid funding
The bill includes $4.65 billion to address the opioid epidemic across various government agencies. NIH would receive $1 billion to research opioid addiction and alternative pain management and treatment.
CDC
The CDC would receive $8.3 billion in funding, rejecting President Trump’s call for $900 million in cuts.
AGA leaders recognized for their contributions to the field
We are proud to announce the 2018 AGA Recognition Award recipients who are honored for their outstanding contributions to the field of gastroenterology and hepatology. The recipients will be formally recognized during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018 in Washington, D.C., but you can congratulate your colleagues now in the AGA Community.
2018 Recognition Award Recipients
Julius Friedenwald Medal
Loren A. Laine, MD
Distinguished Achievement Award in Basic Science
T. Jake Liang, MD, AGAF
William Beaumont Prize in Gastroenterology
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Distinguished Educator Award
James D. Lewis, MD, MSCE, AGAF
Distinguished Clinician Award
Private Practice: Bertha (Nice’) E. Toriz, MD
Clinical Academic Practice: Michael L. Kochman, MD, AGAF
Distinguished Mentor Award
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Young Investigator Awards
Clinical Science: David S. Goldberg, MD, MSCE
Basic Science: Andrew D. Rhim, MD
You can read more about each award recipient and the awards themselves at gastro.org/about/awards.
We are proud to announce the 2018 AGA Recognition Award recipients who are honored for their outstanding contributions to the field of gastroenterology and hepatology. The recipients will be formally recognized during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018 in Washington, D.C., but you can congratulate your colleagues now in the AGA Community.
2018 Recognition Award Recipients
Julius Friedenwald Medal
Loren A. Laine, MD
Distinguished Achievement Award in Basic Science
T. Jake Liang, MD, AGAF
William Beaumont Prize in Gastroenterology
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Distinguished Educator Award
James D. Lewis, MD, MSCE, AGAF
Distinguished Clinician Award
Private Practice: Bertha (Nice’) E. Toriz, MD
Clinical Academic Practice: Michael L. Kochman, MD, AGAF
Distinguished Mentor Award
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Young Investigator Awards
Clinical Science: David S. Goldberg, MD, MSCE
Basic Science: Andrew D. Rhim, MD
You can read more about each award recipient and the awards themselves at gastro.org/about/awards.
We are proud to announce the 2018 AGA Recognition Award recipients who are honored for their outstanding contributions to the field of gastroenterology and hepatology. The recipients will be formally recognized during Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2018 in Washington, D.C., but you can congratulate your colleagues now in the AGA Community.
2018 Recognition Award Recipients
Julius Friedenwald Medal
Loren A. Laine, MD
Distinguished Achievement Award in Basic Science
T. Jake Liang, MD, AGAF
William Beaumont Prize in Gastroenterology
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Distinguished Educator Award
James D. Lewis, MD, MSCE, AGAF
Distinguished Clinician Award
Private Practice: Bertha (Nice’) E. Toriz, MD
Clinical Academic Practice: Michael L. Kochman, MD, AGAF
Distinguished Mentor Award
Mary K. Estes, PhD, AGAF
Young Investigator Awards
Clinical Science: David S. Goldberg, MD, MSCE
Basic Science: Andrew D. Rhim, MD
You can read more about each award recipient and the awards themselves at gastro.org/about/awards.
Save the date for the 2019 Crohn’s & Colitis Congress
Building on the success of this year’s inaugural Crohn’s & Colitis Congress™, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) are pleased to announce the second annual Crohn’s & Colitis Congress. Be sure to save the date: Feb. 7-9, 2019 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
The Crohn’s & Colitis Congress is the must-attend meeting for all inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) professionals. It offers a bold, multidisciplinary approach to learning in the IBD space as one care team. All health care professionals and research investigators interested in IBD are invited to attend.
By bringing all audiences together to learn from each other, the Congress embodies how IBD research and patient care needs to be approached – it is not “one-size-fits-all” and it requires collaboration from a variety of health practitioners.
By attending the Crohn’s& Colitis Congress, attendees will:
• Build a powerful network and share solutions with IBD thought leaders.
• Discover cutting-edge basic, translational and clinical research in the IBD space.
• Determine best practices at every stage of the patient’s disease journey.
• Explore new technologies and products from IBD-related exhibitors.
• Earn CME and MOC points.
• Improve skills and patient outcomes.
• Learn together as one multidisciplinary care team.
Get ready to expand your knowledge, network with IBD leaders, and be inspired. Stay tuned at www.crohnscolitiscongress.org for more details coming in later this spring.
Building on the success of this year’s inaugural Crohn’s & Colitis Congress™, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) are pleased to announce the second annual Crohn’s & Colitis Congress. Be sure to save the date: Feb. 7-9, 2019 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
The Crohn’s & Colitis Congress is the must-attend meeting for all inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) professionals. It offers a bold, multidisciplinary approach to learning in the IBD space as one care team. All health care professionals and research investigators interested in IBD are invited to attend.
By bringing all audiences together to learn from each other, the Congress embodies how IBD research and patient care needs to be approached – it is not “one-size-fits-all” and it requires collaboration from a variety of health practitioners.
By attending the Crohn’s& Colitis Congress, attendees will:
• Build a powerful network and share solutions with IBD thought leaders.
• Discover cutting-edge basic, translational and clinical research in the IBD space.
• Determine best practices at every stage of the patient’s disease journey.
• Explore new technologies and products from IBD-related exhibitors.
• Earn CME and MOC points.
• Improve skills and patient outcomes.
• Learn together as one multidisciplinary care team.
Get ready to expand your knowledge, network with IBD leaders, and be inspired. Stay tuned at www.crohnscolitiscongress.org for more details coming in later this spring.
Building on the success of this year’s inaugural Crohn’s & Colitis Congress™, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) are pleased to announce the second annual Crohn’s & Colitis Congress. Be sure to save the date: Feb. 7-9, 2019 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
The Crohn’s & Colitis Congress is the must-attend meeting for all inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) professionals. It offers a bold, multidisciplinary approach to learning in the IBD space as one care team. All health care professionals and research investigators interested in IBD are invited to attend.
By bringing all audiences together to learn from each other, the Congress embodies how IBD research and patient care needs to be approached – it is not “one-size-fits-all” and it requires collaboration from a variety of health practitioners.
By attending the Crohn’s& Colitis Congress, attendees will:
• Build a powerful network and share solutions with IBD thought leaders.
• Discover cutting-edge basic, translational and clinical research in the IBD space.
• Determine best practices at every stage of the patient’s disease journey.
• Explore new technologies and products from IBD-related exhibitors.
• Earn CME and MOC points.
• Improve skills and patient outcomes.
• Learn together as one multidisciplinary care team.
Get ready to expand your knowledge, network with IBD leaders, and be inspired. Stay tuned at www.crohnscolitiscongress.org for more details coming in later this spring.
AGA seeks regulatory relief for GIs
A top priority for AGA this year is to call on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to alleviate some of the regulatory burden that currently falls on physicians. Reevaluating prior authorization, step therapy, and Stark reform would allow physicians to devote more time and resources to provide high-quality care. A more comprehensive breakdown of the following key areas is available along with other top issues.
Prior authorization
• AGA urges payors to standardize prior authorization requirements and criteria and make them transparent and easily accessible. The services subject to prior authorization vary by payor, including CMS, as well as by plan type within a given payor. Physicians and physician practices are forced to comply with an increasing and unmanageable number of prior authorization requirements.
• AGA urges payors, including CMS, to develop and implement processes that allow for true “peer-to-peer” dialogues. Gastroenterologists seeking prior authorization for prescription drug or biologic therapy on behalf of a patient should be routed to a physician specialist in the same or similar discipline with expertise in the given condition to discuss the request.
Step therapy
• Step therapy, also known as “fail first,” occurs when an insurer requires patients to try and fail one or more lower-cost prescription drug or biologic therapies before covering the therapy originally prescribed by their health care provider.
• AGA urges insurers to reduce the burden of step therapy on physicians and physician practice. AGA supports The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (H.R. 2077), legislation introduced by Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., both physicians, that would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy.
Stark reform
• Stark self-referral laws prohibit physicians from referring patients to an entity in which they have a financial interest, which limits their ability to participate in many advanced alternative payment models (APMs). These prohibitions stifle care delivery innovation by inhibiting practices from incentivizing their physicians to deliver patient care more efficiently, because the practices cannot use resources from designated health services in rewarding or penalizing adherence to new clinical care pathways.
• AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements.
A top priority for AGA this year is to call on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to alleviate some of the regulatory burden that currently falls on physicians. Reevaluating prior authorization, step therapy, and Stark reform would allow physicians to devote more time and resources to provide high-quality care. A more comprehensive breakdown of the following key areas is available along with other top issues.
Prior authorization
• AGA urges payors to standardize prior authorization requirements and criteria and make them transparent and easily accessible. The services subject to prior authorization vary by payor, including CMS, as well as by plan type within a given payor. Physicians and physician practices are forced to comply with an increasing and unmanageable number of prior authorization requirements.
• AGA urges payors, including CMS, to develop and implement processes that allow for true “peer-to-peer” dialogues. Gastroenterologists seeking prior authorization for prescription drug or biologic therapy on behalf of a patient should be routed to a physician specialist in the same or similar discipline with expertise in the given condition to discuss the request.
Step therapy
• Step therapy, also known as “fail first,” occurs when an insurer requires patients to try and fail one or more lower-cost prescription drug or biologic therapies before covering the therapy originally prescribed by their health care provider.
• AGA urges insurers to reduce the burden of step therapy on physicians and physician practice. AGA supports The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (H.R. 2077), legislation introduced by Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., both physicians, that would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy.
Stark reform
• Stark self-referral laws prohibit physicians from referring patients to an entity in which they have a financial interest, which limits their ability to participate in many advanced alternative payment models (APMs). These prohibitions stifle care delivery innovation by inhibiting practices from incentivizing their physicians to deliver patient care more efficiently, because the practices cannot use resources from designated health services in rewarding or penalizing adherence to new clinical care pathways.
• AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements.
A top priority for AGA this year is to call on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), other payors, and Congress to alleviate some of the regulatory burden that currently falls on physicians. Reevaluating prior authorization, step therapy, and Stark reform would allow physicians to devote more time and resources to provide high-quality care. A more comprehensive breakdown of the following key areas is available along with other top issues.
Prior authorization
• AGA urges payors to standardize prior authorization requirements and criteria and make them transparent and easily accessible. The services subject to prior authorization vary by payor, including CMS, as well as by plan type within a given payor. Physicians and physician practices are forced to comply with an increasing and unmanageable number of prior authorization requirements.
• AGA urges payors, including CMS, to develop and implement processes that allow for true “peer-to-peer” dialogues. Gastroenterologists seeking prior authorization for prescription drug or biologic therapy on behalf of a patient should be routed to a physician specialist in the same or similar discipline with expertise in the given condition to discuss the request.
Step therapy
• Step therapy, also known as “fail first,” occurs when an insurer requires patients to try and fail one or more lower-cost prescription drug or biologic therapies before covering the therapy originally prescribed by their health care provider.
• AGA urges insurers to reduce the burden of step therapy on physicians and physician practice. AGA supports The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (H.R. 2077), legislation introduced by Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., both physicians, that would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy.
Stark reform
• Stark self-referral laws prohibit physicians from referring patients to an entity in which they have a financial interest, which limits their ability to participate in many advanced alternative payment models (APMs). These prohibitions stifle care delivery innovation by inhibiting practices from incentivizing their physicians to deliver patient care more efficiently, because the practices cannot use resources from designated health services in rewarding or penalizing adherence to new clinical care pathways.
• AGA supports S. 2051/H.R. 4206, the Medicare Care Coordination Improvement Act, which would provide CMS with the regulatory authority to create exceptions under the Stark law for APMs and to remove barriers in the current law to the development and operation of such arrangements.