Society News

Don't forget that the end of the year is the time to keep up to date with your SVS membership dues. Invoices were emailed to all members earlier this month and are due by Dec. 31.

It's simple to pay your 2018 dues online -- and there's no need to write out a check or find a stamp! Just log on to vascular.org/payinvoice. (While you're at it, please make sure your record is up to date.) You also can make a donation to the SVS Foundation at the same time. For membership help, e-mail the SVS membership department, or call 312-334-2313

Don't forget that the end of the year is the time to keep up to date with your SVS membership dues. Invoices were emailed to all members earlier this month and are due by Dec. 31.

It's simple to pay your 2018 dues online -- and there's no need to write out a check or find a stamp! Just log on to vascular.org/payinvoice. (While you're at it, please make sure your record is up to date.) You also can make a donation to the SVS Foundation at the same time. For membership help, e-mail the SVS membership department, or call 312-334-2313

Don't forget that the end of the year is the time to keep up to date with your SVS membership dues. Invoices were emailed to all members earlier this month and are due by Dec. 31.

It's simple to pay your 2018 dues online -- and there's no need to write out a check or find a stamp! Just log on to vascular.org/payinvoice. (While you're at it, please make sure your record is up to date.) You also can make a donation to the SVS Foundation at the same time. For membership help, e-mail the SVS membership department, or call 312-334-2313

After the turkey, after the frenzy of post-holiday shopping, do something for others by donating to the SVS Foundation on #Giving Tuesday.

This day kicks off the charitable season, when many people focus on holiday and year-end giving. The global day of giving was founded in 2012 and is celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, on the heels of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping days.

This year, the expanded mission of the SVS Foundation provides even more reasons to give generously. So, on #GivingTuesday, think of the patients you treat and whose lives you’ve impacted – and donate to the SVS Foundation. 

After the turkey, after the frenzy of post-holiday shopping, do something for others by donating to the SVS Foundation on #Giving Tuesday.

This day kicks off the charitable season, when many people focus on holiday and year-end giving. The global day of giving was founded in 2012 and is celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, on the heels of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping days.

This year, the expanded mission of the SVS Foundation provides even more reasons to give generously. So, on #GivingTuesday, think of the patients you treat and whose lives you’ve impacted – and donate to the SVS Foundation. 

After the turkey, after the frenzy of post-holiday shopping, do something for others by donating to the SVS Foundation on #Giving Tuesday.

This day kicks off the charitable season, when many people focus on holiday and year-end giving. The global day of giving was founded in 2012 and is celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, on the heels of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping days.

This year, the expanded mission of the SVS Foundation provides even more reasons to give generously. So, on #GivingTuesday, think of the patients you treat and whose lives you’ve impacted – and donate to the SVS Foundation. 

November is American Diabetes Month – and as we know, that disease goes hand in hand (and foot) with vascular disease. SVS has created a handy pdf for your office on how to keep feet healthy despite diabetes, available here, along with a press release on the topic. Please feel free to print the infographic out and share with patients, staff and coworkers.

November is American Diabetes Month – and as we know, that disease goes hand in hand (and foot) with vascular disease. SVS has created a handy pdf for your office on how to keep feet healthy despite diabetes, available here, along with a press release on the topic. Please feel free to print the infographic out and share with patients, staff and coworkers.

November is American Diabetes Month – and as we know, that disease goes hand in hand (and foot) with vascular disease. SVS has created a handy pdf for your office on how to keep feet healthy despite diabetes, available here, along with a press release on the topic. Please feel free to print the infographic out and share with patients, staff and coworkers.

Appealing step therapy protocols can be time consuming and burdensome for physicians and patients, and can takes months to resolve. The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (HR 2077), introduced by physicians Reps. Brad Wenstrup, R-OH, and Raul Ruiz, D-CA, would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy by their insurance provider.

AGA endorsed this legislation to provide patients with a clear, equitable and fair appeals process when subjected to step therapy protocols. AGA is working with patient advocacy groups, like the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, provider, and professional societies to educate members of Congress on this issue and the implications it has for patients being able to access the right treatment at the right time.
 

[email protected]

Appealing step therapy protocols can be time consuming and burdensome for physicians and patients, and can takes months to resolve. The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (HR 2077), introduced by physicians Reps. Brad Wenstrup, R-OH, and Raul Ruiz, D-CA, would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy by their insurance provider.

AGA endorsed this legislation to provide patients with a clear, equitable and fair appeals process when subjected to step therapy protocols. AGA is working with patient advocacy groups, like the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, provider, and professional societies to educate members of Congress on this issue and the implications it has for patients being able to access the right treatment at the right time.
 

[email protected]

Appealing step therapy protocols can be time consuming and burdensome for physicians and patients, and can takes months to resolve. The Restoring the Patient’s Voice Act (HR 2077), introduced by physicians Reps. Brad Wenstrup, R-OH, and Raul Ruiz, D-CA, would provide a clear and timely appeals process when a patient has been subjected to step therapy by their insurance provider.

AGA endorsed this legislation to provide patients with a clear, equitable and fair appeals process when subjected to step therapy protocols. AGA is working with patient advocacy groups, like the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, provider, and professional societies to educate members of Congress on this issue and the implications it has for patients being able to access the right treatment at the right time.
 

[email protected]

Marvin H. Sleisenger, MD, AGAF, of Kentfield, Calif., died at age 93 on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Sleisenger served as editor of Gastroenterology from 1965 to 1970, and as president of AGA in 1976.

Sleisenger attended Harvard College and Harvard Medical School. He trained at Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell Medical School. During the Korean War, he served in the U.S. Naval Medical Corps. He was a member of the faculty at Cornell Medical School and in 1954, was appointed as chief of the division of gastroenterology. In 1968, he became professor and vice chairman of the department of medicine of the University of California, San Francisco and chief of the medical service at the Veterans Administration Hospital. His achievements as an outstanding educator were recognized in 1994 when he became the recipient of the AGA Distinguished Educator Award.

Marvin H. Sleisenger, MD, AGAF, of Kentfield, Calif., died at age 93 on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Sleisenger served as editor of Gastroenterology from 1965 to 1970, and as president of AGA in 1976.

Sleisenger attended Harvard College and Harvard Medical School. He trained at Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell Medical School. During the Korean War, he served in the U.S. Naval Medical Corps. He was a member of the faculty at Cornell Medical School and in 1954, was appointed as chief of the division of gastroenterology. In 1968, he became professor and vice chairman of the department of medicine of the University of California, San Francisco and chief of the medical service at the Veterans Administration Hospital. His achievements as an outstanding educator were recognized in 1994 when he became the recipient of the AGA Distinguished Educator Award.

Marvin H. Sleisenger, MD, AGAF, of Kentfield, Calif., died at age 93 on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. Sleisenger served as editor of Gastroenterology from 1965 to 1970, and as president of AGA in 1976.

Sleisenger attended Harvard College and Harvard Medical School. He trained at Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell Medical School. During the Korean War, he served in the U.S. Naval Medical Corps. He was a member of the faculty at Cornell Medical School and in 1954, was appointed as chief of the division of gastroenterology. In 1968, he became professor and vice chairman of the department of medicine of the University of California, San Francisco and chief of the medical service at the Veterans Administration Hospital. His achievements as an outstanding educator were recognized in 1994 when he became the recipient of the AGA Distinguished Educator Award.

Dear Colleagues,

Where would clinical practice be today without GI research?

The way we diagnose and treat patients is thanks to years of research. But as you know, federal research funding is at risk. Promising, early-stage investigators find it increasingly difficult to secure funding and many leave the field because they are unable to sustain a research career.

This is bad news for digestive health patients and the clinicians who care for them.

As a member of the GI community, you understand the need to continually advance the science and practice of gastroenterology. You understand the physical, emotional, and financial costs of digestive diseases. And you understand the tremendous value of research to advance patient care.

At a time when we are on the brink of major scientific breakthroughs, there is a growing gap in federal funding for research. Many well-qualified young investigators cannot get government funding. Gifts to the AGA Research Foundation this year directly supported 52 talented investigators. Despite this success, over 200 other innovative and promising research ideas went unfunded.

I am asking you to support a cause important to me and equally important to you. You can help fill the funding gap and protect the next generation of investigators by joining me in supporting the AGA Research Foundation through a personal gift.

Every dollar is a step forward...to new treatments. To cures impacting patients’ lives. To new generations of talented investigators in digestive disease research.

Please help us continue our efforts by making your tax-deductible donation. Donate today at www.gastro.org/donate.

Thank you in advance for your support and best wishes for a happy, healthy holiday season and successful New Year.
 

Three easy ways to give

Online: www.gastro.org/donateThrough the mail:

AGA Research Foundation

4930 Del Ray Avenue

Bethesda, MD 20814

Over the phone: 301-222-4002

All gifts are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of U.S. law.

Dear Colleagues,

Where would clinical practice be today without GI research?

The way we diagnose and treat patients is thanks to years of research. But as you know, federal research funding is at risk. Promising, early-stage investigators find it increasingly difficult to secure funding and many leave the field because they are unable to sustain a research career.

This is bad news for digestive health patients and the clinicians who care for them.

As a member of the GI community, you understand the need to continually advance the science and practice of gastroenterology. You understand the physical, emotional, and financial costs of digestive diseases. And you understand the tremendous value of research to advance patient care.

At a time when we are on the brink of major scientific breakthroughs, there is a growing gap in federal funding for research. Many well-qualified young investigators cannot get government funding. Gifts to the AGA Research Foundation this year directly supported 52 talented investigators. Despite this success, over 200 other innovative and promising research ideas went unfunded.

I am asking you to support a cause important to me and equally important to you. You can help fill the funding gap and protect the next generation of investigators by joining me in supporting the AGA Research Foundation through a personal gift.

Every dollar is a step forward...to new treatments. To cures impacting patients’ lives. To new generations of talented investigators in digestive disease research.

Please help us continue our efforts by making your tax-deductible donation. Donate today at www.gastro.org/donate.

Thank you in advance for your support and best wishes for a happy, healthy holiday season and successful New Year.
 

Three easy ways to give

Online: www.gastro.org/donateThrough the mail:

AGA Research Foundation

4930 Del Ray Avenue

Bethesda, MD 20814

Over the phone: 301-222-4002

All gifts are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of U.S. law.

Dear Colleagues,

Where would clinical practice be today without GI research?

The way we diagnose and treat patients is thanks to years of research. But as you know, federal research funding is at risk. Promising, early-stage investigators find it increasingly difficult to secure funding and many leave the field because they are unable to sustain a research career.

This is bad news for digestive health patients and the clinicians who care for them.

As a member of the GI community, you understand the need to continually advance the science and practice of gastroenterology. You understand the physical, emotional, and financial costs of digestive diseases. And you understand the tremendous value of research to advance patient care.

At a time when we are on the brink of major scientific breakthroughs, there is a growing gap in federal funding for research. Many well-qualified young investigators cannot get government funding. Gifts to the AGA Research Foundation this year directly supported 52 talented investigators. Despite this success, over 200 other innovative and promising research ideas went unfunded.

I am asking you to support a cause important to me and equally important to you. You can help fill the funding gap and protect the next generation of investigators by joining me in supporting the AGA Research Foundation through a personal gift.

Every dollar is a step forward...to new treatments. To cures impacting patients’ lives. To new generations of talented investigators in digestive disease research.

Please help us continue our efforts by making your tax-deductible donation. Donate today at www.gastro.org/donate.

Thank you in advance for your support and best wishes for a happy, healthy holiday season and successful New Year.
 

Three easy ways to give

Online: www.gastro.org/donateThrough the mail:

AGA Research Foundation

4930 Del Ray Avenue

Bethesda, MD 20814

Over the phone: 301-222-4002

All gifts are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of U.S. law.

The AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology is excited to announce a new clinical research registry to track and evaluate patient outcomes after trans-oral endoscopic suturing procedures.

The Prospective Registry for Trans-Oral Suturing Applications (“Endoscopic Suturing Registry”) will collect real-world data related to the safety and effectiveness of procedures done with Apollo Endosurgery’s OverStitch™ Endoscopic Suturing System. Jennifer Maranki, MD, director of endoscopy, Penn State Milton S. Hershey School of Medicine, and Brian Dunkin, MD, head of endoscopic surgery and medical director, Houston Methodist Institute for Technology, Innovation and Education, will serve as principal investigators for the Endoscopic Suturing Registry. The Registry will begin collecting patient data in early 2018.

We asked Michael Kochman, MD, AGAF, past chair of the AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology and director of the Center for Endoscopic Innovation, Research and Training at the University of Pennsylvania, to weigh in on the value of this new registry.

“Flexible endoscopic suturing is an important tool for the treatment of a number of GI disorders. As these procedures become more routine in GI and surgery practices across the country, the real-world data AGA will collect through the Endoscopic Suturing Registry will guide all stakeholders in making informed decisions around the continued adoption of these procedures in clinical practice.”

Learn more about AGA’s registry initiative at www.gastro.org/patient-care/registries-studies.
 

The AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology is excited to announce a new clinical research registry to track and evaluate patient outcomes after trans-oral endoscopic suturing procedures.

The Prospective Registry for Trans-Oral Suturing Applications (“Endoscopic Suturing Registry”) will collect real-world data related to the safety and effectiveness of procedures done with Apollo Endosurgery’s OverStitch™ Endoscopic Suturing System. Jennifer Maranki, MD, director of endoscopy, Penn State Milton S. Hershey School of Medicine, and Brian Dunkin, MD, head of endoscopic surgery and medical director, Houston Methodist Institute for Technology, Innovation and Education, will serve as principal investigators for the Endoscopic Suturing Registry. The Registry will begin collecting patient data in early 2018.

We asked Michael Kochman, MD, AGAF, past chair of the AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology and director of the Center for Endoscopic Innovation, Research and Training at the University of Pennsylvania, to weigh in on the value of this new registry.

“Flexible endoscopic suturing is an important tool for the treatment of a number of GI disorders. As these procedures become more routine in GI and surgery practices across the country, the real-world data AGA will collect through the Endoscopic Suturing Registry will guide all stakeholders in making informed decisions around the continued adoption of these procedures in clinical practice.”

Learn more about AGA’s registry initiative at www.gastro.org/patient-care/registries-studies.
 

The AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology is excited to announce a new clinical research registry to track and evaluate patient outcomes after trans-oral endoscopic suturing procedures.

The Prospective Registry for Trans-Oral Suturing Applications (“Endoscopic Suturing Registry”) will collect real-world data related to the safety and effectiveness of procedures done with Apollo Endosurgery’s OverStitch™ Endoscopic Suturing System. Jennifer Maranki, MD, director of endoscopy, Penn State Milton S. Hershey School of Medicine, and Brian Dunkin, MD, head of endoscopic surgery and medical director, Houston Methodist Institute for Technology, Innovation and Education, will serve as principal investigators for the Endoscopic Suturing Registry. The Registry will begin collecting patient data in early 2018.

We asked Michael Kochman, MD, AGAF, past chair of the AGA Center for GI Innovation and Technology and director of the Center for Endoscopic Innovation, Research and Training at the University of Pennsylvania, to weigh in on the value of this new registry.

“Flexible endoscopic suturing is an important tool for the treatment of a number of GI disorders. As these procedures become more routine in GI and surgery practices across the country, the real-world data AGA will collect through the Endoscopic Suturing Registry will guide all stakeholders in making informed decisions around the continued adoption of these procedures in clinical practice.”

Learn more about AGA’s registry initiative at www.gastro.org/patient-care/registries-studies.
 

What is the colonoscopy loophole?

The Affordable Care Act covers screening colonoscopies at no cost to patients as long as no polyps are found. As Dr. Siddique explains in her article, finding a polyp changes the billing code to a therapeutic colonoscopy, a reclassification that changes the procedure from a diagnostic screening to an intervention. And this means a bill is generated. This reclassification directly affects those covered by Medicare and not commercial insurers.

AGA leaders urge Congress to correct this problem

Dr. Siddique – a member of the AGA Trainee and Early Career Committee and AGA Clinical Guidelines Committee – joined other AGA leaders for AGA Advocacy Day in late September where they spoke directly to lawmakers about patients who are blindsided by this regulation. AGA supports closing this loophole to ensure patients continue to have access to quality care and preventative screenings. We encourage all members to continue to share their patient stories, like Dr. Siddique has, to help raise awareness of this issue.

AGA can help you advocate for GI

Watch an AGA webinar at www.gastro.org/webinars/CongressionalMeeting (login required) to learn more about how to set up congressional meetings in your district, or contact Navneet Buttar, AGA government and political affairs manager, at [email protected] or 240-482-3221.

[email protected]

What is the colonoscopy loophole?

The Affordable Care Act covers screening colonoscopies at no cost to patients as long as no polyps are found. As Dr. Siddique explains in her article, finding a polyp changes the billing code to a therapeutic colonoscopy, a reclassification that changes the procedure from a diagnostic screening to an intervention. And this means a bill is generated. This reclassification directly affects those covered by Medicare and not commercial insurers.

AGA leaders urge Congress to correct this problem

Dr. Siddique – a member of the AGA Trainee and Early Career Committee and AGA Clinical Guidelines Committee – joined other AGA leaders for AGA Advocacy Day in late September where they spoke directly to lawmakers about patients who are blindsided by this regulation. AGA supports closing this loophole to ensure patients continue to have access to quality care and preventative screenings. We encourage all members to continue to share their patient stories, like Dr. Siddique has, to help raise awareness of this issue.

AGA can help you advocate for GI

Watch an AGA webinar at www.gastro.org/webinars/CongressionalMeeting (login required) to learn more about how to set up congressional meetings in your district, or contact Navneet Buttar, AGA government and political affairs manager, at [email protected] or 240-482-3221.

[email protected]

What is the colonoscopy loophole?

The Affordable Care Act covers screening colonoscopies at no cost to patients as long as no polyps are found. As Dr. Siddique explains in her article, finding a polyp changes the billing code to a therapeutic colonoscopy, a reclassification that changes the procedure from a diagnostic screening to an intervention. And this means a bill is generated. This reclassification directly affects those covered by Medicare and not commercial insurers.

AGA leaders urge Congress to correct this problem

Dr. Siddique – a member of the AGA Trainee and Early Career Committee and AGA Clinical Guidelines Committee – joined other AGA leaders for AGA Advocacy Day in late September where they spoke directly to lawmakers about patients who are blindsided by this regulation. AGA supports closing this loophole to ensure patients continue to have access to quality care and preventative screenings. We encourage all members to continue to share their patient stories, like Dr. Siddique has, to help raise awareness of this issue.

AGA can help you advocate for GI

Watch an AGA webinar at www.gastro.org/webinars/CongressionalMeeting (login required) to learn more about how to set up congressional meetings in your district, or contact Navneet Buttar, AGA government and political affairs manager, at [email protected] or 240-482-3221.

[email protected]

1. You funded more than a half-million dollars in community service and clinical research grants awarded to the next generation of CHEST leaders.



2. You improved patient outcomes by supporting more than 65 patient education resources focused on procedures and disease states—easily accessed for free at chestfoundation.org/patienteducation.

1. You funded more than a half-million dollars in community service and clinical research grants awarded to the next generation of CHEST leaders.



2. You improved patient outcomes by supporting more than 65 patient education resources focused on procedures and disease states—easily accessed for free at chestfoundation.org/patienteducation.

1. You funded more than a half-million dollars in community service and clinical research grants awarded to the next generation of CHEST leaders.



2. You improved patient outcomes by supporting more than 65 patient education resources focused on procedures and disease states—easily accessed for free at chestfoundation.org/patienteducation.