 |
Job Opportunities |
Top story: Walgreens refuses to fill some controlled substance prescriptions without additional information from prescriber
The California Medical Association has received reports from physicians that Walgreens pharmacists are refusing to fill controlled substances prescriptions without additional information from the prescriber. Physicians are being asked to provide information on diagnosis, ICD-9 codes, expected length of therapy and previous medications tried and failed.
Also in this issue:
- California's exchange adopts model contract
- Anthem Blue Cross notifies 1,563 physicians of need to recredential or be terminated
- CMA seeking nominations for mode-of-practice forum delegates
- Gov. Brown releases revised budget proposal, does not eliminate Medi-Cal reimbursement cut
- Urge your senator to oppose bill that would allow NPs to practice medicine without supervision
- CMA files brief in support of MICRA's cap on noneconomic damages
- MICRA: Judge rules damage awards must be based on amount actually paid for medical care
- CMA offers Congress several solutions to the outdated Medicare physician payment localities
- As cases of valley fever increase, CDPH urges physician education, reporting
- DHCS delays dual-eligible pilot project until next year
- CMA releases 2013 annotated Model Medical Staff Bylaws
- Department of Defense extends temporary waiver for TRICARE authorizations and referrals
- Nominate an outstanding colleague for CMA Foundation Leadership Awards
-
Upcoming webinars:
Featured member benefits:
Auto and Homeowners Insurance: CMA members receive 10 percent off auto insurance from
Mercury Insurance.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance: Members of CMA are eligible to receive a 5 percent discount on their workers' compensation policies (up to 15 percent depending where you place your group medical insurance).
ADVERTISEMENT
1. Walgreens refuses to fill some controlled substance prescriptions without additional information from prescriber
The California Medical Association (CMA) has received reports from physicians that Walgreens pharmacists are refusing to fill controlled substances prescriptions without additional information from the prescriber. Physicians are being asked to provide information on diagnosis, ICD-9 codes, expected length of therapy and previous medications tried and failed.
Walgreens has also sent letters to prescribers that provide an overview of its newly revised policy on good faith dispensing of controlled substances and cites a pharmacist’s corresponding responsibility to ensure that every prescription for controlled substances is “issued for a legitimate medical purpose.”
This new policy appears to be in response to recent investigations and actions by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) related to prescription drug abuse. While proper prescribing and dispensing of controlled substances must be encouraged, CMA is concerned with issues related to patient privacy, administrative burdens and re-diagnosing by pharmacists arising from the inconsistent application and implementation of this policy.
CMA has confirmed with the Medical Board of California, other California-based health professional associations and other state medical societies that this policy is being implemented throughout California and nationwide. In some states, other large chain retail pharmacies are also implementing similar policies and it is likely that other pharmacy chains in California will follow suit.
CMA will be working with the American Medical Association, other state medical societies, and California-based groups to ensure that disruption of legitimate patient care and physician time is minimized. CMA remains committed to addressing concerns about prescription drug abuse in California and is working with the legislature, regulatory bodies and law enforcement to find effective solutions.
For more information on this emerging issue, please see "Fact Sheet on Changes to Walgreens Policy on Filling Prescriptions for Controlled Substances," available in the CMA resource library at www.cmanet.org/resource-library.
If you or your patients have difficulties filling prescriptions for controlled substances at any pharmacy in California, please report problems to CMA's Center for Legal Affairs at legalinfo@cmanet.org or (800) 786-4262.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
ADVERTISEMENT
2. California's exchange adopts model contract
The Board of Directors for Covered California, the state’s health benefit exchange, recently approved its model contract for health plans earlier.
The contract was the result of several rounds of stakeholder engagement following adoption of the exchange board’s plan policy and strategy recommendations last August, said Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California. While exchange staff has approved the final draft of the contract, minor changes will be allowed moving forward on an “as needed basis,” Lee added.
“We don’t think this contract is perfect,” he said. “We think it’s very good and we will improve upon it in time.”
Multiple stakeholders took time to comment on the final adopted document at the Covered California board meeting last week, with most noting that, while they still had concerns regarding the final contract, it had come a long way since the contract outline was released in January. The process, however, moved at a frenetic pace, stakeholders receiving six versions of the nearly 150-page contract, rarely getting more than five business days to review and comment on each successive draft.
From the standpoint of the California Medical Association (CMA), one area of concern that received attention in the final draft was the presence of the 90-day grace period allowed for under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Under the law, subsidized patients would be given a total of 90 days of nonpayment of health insurance premiums before coverage was terminated. Once the patient entered the second month of the grace period, a health plan could begin pending any claims submitted by providers on that patient. In the event that suspension occurred, plans would be able to deny payment for all claims submitted in the last 60 days of the grace period. This provision, CMA repeatedly said, would leave physicians, and ultimately patients, on the hook for roughly two months of claims with no notice that they were exposing themselves to such financial risk.
In the final contract, a provision was included that would require a physician to receive a 15 calendar day notice prior to a subsidized patient entering the 60-day pend and deny period. However, only physicians who had submitted claims on the patient within the previous two months or who were the patient’s assigned primary care provider would get the notice.
CMA was also successful in getting the exchange to delete terms harmful to patients and physicians. For instance, prior drafts of the model contract defined “medical necessity” as primarily a health plan determination and stated that a service could only be “medically appropriate” if it was more cost-effective than alternatives.
With the contract now adopted, the exchange is expected to release the names of plans selected to offer contracts on Covered California’s new online marketplace during its May 23 meeting. Those plans will also be submitting proposed rates for review by state regulators on that date.
Under California’s “active purchaser” model, only plans selected by Covered California’s Board of Directors as “qualified health plans” can offer products on the new marketplace.
Pre-enrollment for the state’s exchange is still expected to begin on Oct. 1, 2013, while the marketplace and coverage will go live on Jan. 1, 2014.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
3. Anthem Blue Cross notifies 1,563 physicians of need to recredential or be terminated
Anthem Blue Cross recently conducted an audit that identified 1,563 participating physicians who are not credentialed with the payor. As a condition of participation, Anthem requires physician to be approved by its credentialing department or practicing under a delegated medical group. If a physician leaves a delegated medical group, they must contract through Anthem to continue to be part of their network.
Blue Cross sent notice to the 1,563 affected physicians, at multiple mailing addresses Anthem had on file for each physician, of the deficiency and advised them that they needed to complete the credentialing process through Council for Affordable Healthcare (CAQH) within 30 days or be terminated from the network.
Physicians who believe they received one of the above letters in error or have general questions about the letter can contact Blue Cross Network Relations at (855) 238-0095.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
4. CMA seeking nominations for mode-of-practice forum delegates
The California Medical Association (CMA) Committee on Nominations is seeking nominations for CMA mode of practice forum delegate and alternate delegate seats for the two-year term commencing July 1, 2013. Members interested in serving as a delegate or alternate delegate for their mode of practice forum should contact their county medical society executive or the forum chair or staff. Current delegates and alternates whose terms are expiring and who are interested in re-election are eligible for nomination to another term. Nominations will be accepted through June 14.
Once the slate of nominees is compiled, forum members will receive electronic ballots for elections to be conducted in early July.
CMA’s Mode of Practice Forums include the Solo and Small-Group Practice Forum, the Medium Group Practice Forum, the Large Group Practice Forum, the Very Large Group Practice Forum, the Academic Practice Forum, the Administrative Medicine Forum, the Government-Employed Physicians Forum and the Hospital-Based Physicians Forum. Membership in these forums is determined by each member’s self-selected mode of practice.
Contact: Homa Neely, (916) 551-2073 or hneely@cmanet.org.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
5. Gov. Brown releases revised budget proposal, does not eliminate Medi-Cal reimbursement cut
Governor Jerry Brown releases his revised budget proposal last week, proposing general-fund expenditures of $96.4 billion for the 2013-2014 fiscal year.
Despite a significantly better financial outlook for the state, the governor's budget assumes $1 billion in savings from a 10 percent Medi-Cal provider rate cut that would be applied retroactively to July 2012.
"While we commend the Governor for his commitment to successful implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in California, including the expansion of Medicaid eligibility in the state the 37,000 members of CMA remain concerned about the continued effort to build reform on the broken backbone of Medi-Cal," said CMA President Paul R. Phinney, a Sacramento pediatrician.
CMA has teamed up with the state’s physicians, dentists, hospitals, first responders, health workers, caregivers, and major health plans in a coalition called "We Care for California" to oppose the Medi-Cal rate cuts. All physicians are invited to join the coalition at a rally on the California State Capitol steps on Tuesday, June 4. For more information, visit www.wecareforca.org.
For more information on the governor's budget proposal as it relates to health care, click here.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
6. Urge your senator to oppose bill that would allow NPs to practice medicine without supervision
A bill that would allow nurse practitioners to independently practice medicine is moving through the California Legislature. Senate Bill 491 (Hernandez) is expected to be heard on the floor of the California State Senate the week of May 20. The California Medical Association (CMA) is urging all physicians to call their senators as soon as possible to oppose the bill.
Masquerading as a bill to improve access to health care, SB 491 would put patients at risk and decrease the quality of care that they receive.
Nurse practitioners, while important to the health care delivery system and an integral part of the health care team, are not trained to diagnose and treat diseases as are physicians. Rather than further fragmenting the health care delivery system, we need to be looking at integrated care models that utilize everyone to the best of their abilities, including nurse practitioners.
Legislators need to know the true impact this bill would have in their districts.
We ask that you and your colleagues call, fax or email your legislators TODAY and urge them to protect patient safety!
Click here to take action in CMA’s grassroots action center.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
7. CMA files brief in support of MICRA's cap on noneconomic damages
The California Medical Association (CMA) filed an amicus brief defending the constitutionality of our state’s landmark Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA), which caps noneconomic damage awards at $250,000. This case is just the latest in many legal challenges to MICRA that have been funded by trial lawyer groups from across the country.
In this case, Gavello v. Millman, M.D., the jury awarded the plaintiffs $2.9 million for lost wages and $1 million for pain and suffering (noneconomic damages). In accordance with MICRA’S noneconomic damages provision (Civil Code Sec. 3333.2), the court adjusted the $1 million dollar award to $250,000 and then apportioned the award to reflect the jury’s finding that Dr. Millman was 20 percent responsible for the plaintiff’s injuries.
The plaintiffs have appealed, asserting that MICRA's cap on noneconomic damages violates the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution and their right to a jury trial.
CMA's amicus brief emphasizes the constitutionality and importance of MICRA's cap on noneconomic damages. It explains that "[t]he Supreme Court and Court of Appeal have held repeatedly that MICRA generally and Section 3333.2 specifically are rationally related to legitimate state interest," and that the plaintiffs arguments do not change that analysis or provide any legitimate basis to question the constitutionality of MICRA.
Today, MICRA is still working to restrain premium rates in California, while states without liability reform are seeing dramatically higher premiums. Because of MICRA, California has a system that is affordable, pays patients for their full medical and economic losses, and promotes patient safety and improved patient care.
MICRA allows patients with justifiable medical negligence claims to receive the following forms of compensation:
- Unlimited economic damages for past and future medical costs.
- Unlimited damages for lost wages, lifetime earning potential or any other economic losses.
- Unlimited punitive damages.
- Up to $250,000 for noneconomic damages (pain and suffering).
MICRA also includes a sliding pay scale to control attorney contingency fees, ensuring that more money goes to patients, not lawyers. MICRA’s $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages has proven to be an effective way of limiting meritless lawsuits and keeping health care costs lower, but has been targeted by the trial lawyers because it restricts the amount of money they can collect in attorney’s fees.
This case is currently before the California Court of Appeal, First Appellate District.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
8. MICRA: Judge rules damage awards must be based on amount actually paid for medical care
In a recent decision, the Second District appellate court ruled that when determining future economic damage awards in personal injury cases (which includes medical professional negligence), juries can only consider reasonable amounts actually paid or incurred for past medical care, not undiscounted provider bills that were never paid by or on behalf of the injured person. The court also ruled that evidence of the full amount billed is inadmissible for the purpose of calculating noneconomic (pain and suffering) damages. The appellate court reversed a lower court's ruling and ordered a new trial to determine compensation based on the actual medical costs paid to providers.
In March, the California Medical Association (CMA), together with the California Hospital Association and the California Dental Association were asked by the court to file an amicus letter in this case (Corenbaum v. Lampkin) regarding evidence that is admissible in court for determining future medical damages and noneconomic damages in an injury case.
The court had solicited input on the following issue: "To what extent, if at all, evidence of the amount billed for medical expenses is admissible and relevant to the issues of future medical expenses and/or noneconomic damages." These specific issues were left unresolved by the California Supreme Court’s 2011 decision in Howell v. Hamilton Meats, where the court held that an injured person can only recover reasonable amounts actually paid or incurred for past medical care, not undiscounted provider bills that were never paid by or on behalf of the injured person.
The trial attorneys in this case argued that the jury for the purposes of determining damages for future medical expenses should hear evidence about the reasonable value of and/or the amounts billed for past medical services, not the amounts actually paid.
CMA told the court in this case, Corenbaum v. Lampkin, that in determining the reasonable cost of future medical expenses, the jury may consider how much medical expenses plaintiffs actually incurred in the past for medical care. However, evidence of the amount that plaintiffs were billed in the past for medical care is not relevant to determining what medical expenses plaintiffs will incur in the future.
Consistent with CMA’s position, the Corenbaum v. Lampkin court ruled that evidence introduced at trial reflecting the amount that was billed rather than the amount actually paid, was not relevant to damages awarded for past medical expenses, future medical expenses or noneconomic damages and was admitted in error. “The error was prejudicial because the full amounts billed rather than the lesser amounts accepted by medical providers as full payment were used” to award damages to the plaintiff.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
9. CMA offers Congress several solutions to the outdated Medicare physician payment localities
The California Medical Association (CMA) is urging Congress to fix Medicare's outdated geographic payment localities as part of any effort to repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) payment formula. In a recent letter to Dave Camp (R-MI), Chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, and Fred Upton (R-MI), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy Commerce, CMA proposed two solutions to this long standing problem that has underpaid physicians in a number of recently urbanized areas. Reps. Camp and Upton are authoring legislation to repeal and replace the SGR.
The first solution proposed by CMA is a pilot project limited to California that would update the California Medicare physician payment localities by changing them to follow the same Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) used to pay hospitals.
The MSAs used to determine payment rates for hospitals are continuously updated, so that reimbursement accurately reflects local costs to deliver care. The physician payment localities, on the other hand, have not been updated in 15 years. As a result, 14 urban California counties, such as San Diego, Monterey and Sacramento, are still designated as rural. This has caused many California physicians to be paid up to 14 percent per year below what Medicare says they should be paid if they were in the correct region.
The pilot would be a temporary, budget-neutral solution that would raise payment levels for urban counties misclassified as rural, while holding remaining rural counties harmless from cuts.
Although the payment discrepancies are most egregious in our state, with California accounting for half of all payment anomalies in the country, a number of other states are experiencing similar problems. According to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the three states with the worst payment accuracy are California, Virginia and Maryland. The second approach proposed by CMA would be a similar multi-state pilot for these three most impacted states.
In both instances, CMA is urging that the remaining rural counties be "held harmless" from cuts that would otherwise result as the result of budget neutrality requirements.
CMA also suggested that another larger approach could be to develop a supplemental rural payment rate to offset the rate reductions that would be experienced by physicians in the locality reconfiguration regions and to help attract physicians to rural areas across the country.
Contact: Elizabeth McNeil, (800) 786-4262 or emcneil@cmanet.org.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
10. As cases of valley fever increase, CDPH urges physician education, reporting
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), coccidiodomycosis, a potentially lethal but often misdiagnosed disease is infecting more and more people in California. Most often prevalent in arid regions of the United States, coccidiodomycosis (also known as "valley fever") can be contracted by simply breathing in fungus-laced spores from dust disturbed by wind.
Reported cases of valley fever cases have continued to increase in California from about 700 in 1998 to more than 5,500 cases reported in 2011. The disease has seen the sharpest rise in Kern County, followed by Kings and Fresno counties. Out of the 18,776 California cases between 2001 and 2008, 265 people died, according to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). According to state public health officials, the reasons for the increase is still unclear.
With the reemergence of coccidiodomycosis, CDPH is urging California physicians to refresh their knowledge and understanding of the disease and to report suspected cases to their local health departments.
Concerns about increases in reported cases valley fever were heightened during the first week of May when a federal health official ordered the transfer of more than 3,000 inmates from two San Joaquin Valley prisons where several dozen have died of the disease in recent years. A day later, state officials began investigating an outbreak in February that sickened 28 workers at two solar power plants under construction in San Luis Obispo County.
Although most individuals infected with coccidiodomycosis will not have any symptoms, approximately 40 percent of patients will present with symptoms that range from pneumonia to skin lesions.
Symptoms arise at 1-3 weeks following infection. Most symptomatic persons will present with a mild, self-limited influenza-like illness or community-acquired pneumonia and may complain of fever, cough, chest discomfort, malaise and fatigue. Infected individuals may also develop diffuse or progressive pneumonia, mediastinitis or pulmonary nodules or cavities. About 5 percent of symptomatic persons will develop disseminated disease, which most often presents as skin lesions, osteomylitis or meningitis.
While anyone in the endemic area is at risk, persons working in occupations involving dirt and dust exposure may be at increased risk of developing valley fever. African Americans, Filipinos, persons aged 65 and older, pregnant women in their third trimester and persons with diabetes or immunocompromising conditions are at increased risk of severe pulmonary or disseminated disease when infected.
Several diagnostic methods for coccidioidomycosis are available including serology, culture and histopathology and several antifungal medications are available for treatment.
For more information:
- Infectious Disease Society of America
- Free CME on valley fever for primary care physicians
- California Department of Public Health
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
11. DHCS delays dual-eligible pilot project until next year
The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) announced that it would delay the implementation of the state's "pilot project" to redesign care for Medicare/Medi-Cal dual eligibles. The program, called CalMediConnect, is now expected to begin no earlier than January 2014. Previously, implementation was scheduled for October 2013.
The project was authorized by the Assembly in July 2012 in an effort to save money and better coordinate care for the state’s low-income seniors and persons with disabilities. The program begins with a three-year demonstration project that would see a large portion of the state's dual eligible beneficiaries transition to managed care plans. The project will impact approximately 450,000 duals in eight counties – Alameda, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, San Mateo, San Bernardino, and Santa Clara.
Patients will be enrolled in a managed care plan unless they actively opt out.
The California Medical Association (CMA) had urged DHCS to withdraw the overly-ambitious project proposal and to take more time to develop a scaled-down project that gives seniors and the professionals that take care of them information and feedback mechanisms to assure continuity of care and improved care coordination. Unfortunately, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved the project last month, clearing the state to begin implementation.
CMA will work with DHCS and other stakeholders to minimize the impact of the transition on physicians and their patients.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
12. CMA releases 2013 annotated Model Medical Staff Bylaws
The California Medical Association (CMA) has released its 2013 Model Medical Staff Bylaws. These bylaws are the definitive guide for medical staffs, providing details on professional and legal structures to support effective medical staff operations and self-governance.
The model bylaws are fully annotated to provide background information on critical provisions, including explanations of relevant state and federal laws, hospital accreditation standards, and other explanatory information. CMA's lawyers performed a complete evaluation of the bylaws to ensure they comport with current law and reflect CMA’s positions and policies.
New for 2013: This year's bylaws clarify the authority and responsibility of the medical executive committee to appoint a hearing officer and the members of the judicial review committee in a peer review proceeding; harmonize the procedures for handling and investigating complaints, including disruptive behavior complaints, that could trigger hearing rights; and include additional detail in the footnotes to explain the policy or legal rationale underlying certain provisions of the model bylaws.
The 2013 Model Medical Staff Bylaws are available free to any medical staff with an active membership in CMA’s Organized Medical Staff Section (OMSS). If your medical staff is not already an OMSS member, you can join by completing and submitting the OMSS membership application at www.cmanet.org/omss.
The model bylaws are also available to non-OMSS members for a fee. For more information, visit the CMA resource library.
Contact: CMA member help center, (800) 786-4262 or memberservice@cmanet.org.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
13. Department of Defense extends temporary waiver for TRICARE authorizations and referrals
Since the transition of TRICARE managed care services from TriWest to United Health Military & Veterans (UMVS) on April 1, 2013, physicians have been reporting significant delays in processing of authorizations and referral requests, which is affecting patient care.
While the standard timeframe for processing of authorization and referral requests is two business days for urgent request and five business days for routine requests, the payor has been weeks behind in processing of these requests. The California Medical Association (CMA) has been working closely with UMVS to seek a resolution to this and other issues related to the transition.
To address the delays, the Department of Defense (DoD) has waived authorization and referral request requirements for all TRICARE covered services from April 1 through June 18, 2013. DoD had originally waived the requirements only until May 18, but CMA today learned that the temporary waiver has been extended through June 18. Physicians will not during that time be required to seek or wait for an approval from UMVS for any covered services.
The waiver will be in place for referrals received through June 18, 2013, for care with dates of service of April 1, 2013, through September 15, 2013. Referrals made during the waiver period with anticipated dates of service of September 16 and beyond will need authorization. Physicians are urged to call UMVS at (877) 988-9378 to arrange for such authorization so that claims for those services are paid correctly.
However, if a practice received a denial for a previously submitted request for a referral or authorization, that denial will remain in effect.
In a May 3 letter announcing the waiver, physicians are directed to provide a copy of the letter to patients at the time of referral to ensure the specialty physician knows the request is authorized.
Questions about the waiver should be directed to UMVS Provider Services at (877) 988-9378. To view the notice on the UMVS website, click here.
For more information on the TRICARE transition, see CMA's TRICARE Transition Guide, available free to members in CMA's online resource library at www.cmanet.org/resource-library.
Contact: CMA’s reimbursement helpline, (888) 401-5911 or economicservices@cmanet.org.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
14. Nominate an outstanding colleague for CMA Foundation Leadership Awards
The California Medical Association (CMA) Foundation is accepting nominations for the 2013 Leadership Awards, which celebrate the efforts of individuals or organizations that make a difference in the health of Californians. The Robert D. Sparks, M.D., Leadership Award, the Ethnic Physician Leadership Award, and the Adarsh S. Mahal, M.D., Access to Health Care and Disparities Award recognize the compassion and commitment of California's health care professionals. The deadline to submit nominations is June 21, 2013. Nomination information and packets for each award are available at the CMA Foundation website.
The awards will be presented on Sunday, October 12, 2013, at the foundation's annual President's Reception and Awards Gala, held in conjunction with the CMA House of Delegates, October 11-13, 2013, in Anaheim.
Contact: Shelley Tirsbeck, (916) 779-6622 or stirsbeck@thecmafoundation.org.
Have something to say about this story? Post Comment
15. Upcoming webinars
5/22: Documentation and Coding Auditing: Lessons Learned: Documentation and coding are critical elements to both practice revenue as well as compliance. At a minimum your practice may be losing revenue due to improper coding or documentation. Worse, you may be exposing your practice to tremendous compliance and financial risk. During this 60-minute webinar, join expert auditors from AAPC Physician Services who will share lessons learned from having conducted over 75,000 audits.
5/23: Essentials for ICD-10-CM: Part 2: Give employees a high-level overview of the transition to ICD-10. Available in either classroom or online webinar, this 3-part series gives your staff a high-level overview and fundamental knowledge of ICD-10. You’ll learn documentation challenges, the differences with ICD-9, and how ICD-10 will affect each business area of your practice. Series of three webinars, continued on May 30. CMA members receive discounted price.
5/29: Estate Planning After the Fiscal Cliff: Now that the exemption for estate taxes is $5.25 million, what do you need to do? Are annual gifting and 529 education funds no longer necessary? When are family limited partnerships still useful? Do AB trusts still make sense? Should you keep or cancel your life insurance policies? What are intentionally defective grantor trusts, and when do they make sense? If you already have an estate plan, or have done no estate planning, what do you need to do? Hosted by a California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust and Probate Law.
5/30: Essentials for ICD-10-CM: Part 3: Give employees a high-level overview of the transition to ICD-10. Available in either classroom or online webinar, this 3-part series gives your staff a high-level overview and fundamental knowledge of ICD-10. You’ll learn documentation challenges, the differences with ICD-9, and how ICD-10 will affect each business area of your practice. CMA members receive discounted price.
Contact: CMA's member help center, (800) 786-4262 or memberservice@cmanet.org.
16. Featured member benefits
Auto and Homeowners Insurance: CMA members receive 10 percent off auto insurance from Mercury Insurance. For more details, call Mercury Insurance Group at (888) 637-2431 or visit www.mercuryinsurance.com/cma.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance provided by Marsh
Did you know that CMA members can save 5 percent on their workers’ compensation insurance? And, they may save even more than that, up to 15 percent, depending upon their group medical carrier.
It’s true. CMA members receive a 5 percent discount on workers’ compensation insurance policies provided through Employers Compensation Insurance Company. This discount is available exclusively through Marsh/Seabury & Smith Insurance Program Management, the CMA sponsored broker and administrator.
With workers’ compensation premiums increasing this year, take a moment to contact a Marsh Client Advisor to learn how you can save.
d/b/a in CA Seabury & Smith Insurance Program Management • CA Ins. Lic. #0633005 • AR Ins. Lic. #245544