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I remember Dr. Robert Bruce Bergmann asking me to join the NCMS exec board many years ago. He told me that the time commitment would be small and the work worthwhile. Bob was half right. The work was worthwhile. Working with committed colleagues, and professional staff for an organization that benefits all doctors in Nassau County has been a labor of love. While my wife, family, friends, patients and partners have seen me stretch my days and nights, I feel honored to have served as President of the Nassau County Medical Society during this past year. I look forward to seeing the goals that I outlined in July being completed during the tenure of Dr. Robin Scarlatta and Dr. Paul Pipia. My primary goal was to insure that our organization survives. It has. Our executive board has reviewed options regarding the financial security of the NCMS. The Nassau Academy Executive Board and our NCMS doctors met with real estate and development companies and feel confident that the building we presently occupy will help to secure our organization in the future. We are reducing our overhead by changing the configuration of our library, closing the Nassau Board of Medical Economics, and reducing our staff. Membership retention has been a growing area of concern. Our quarterly membership meetings have moved to a cocktail hour and dinner venue more suited to welcoming new members. These meeting, sponsored by banks, credit unions, and pharmaceutical companies, have been better attended and more cost effective. We continue to improve our communications. A new format for our newsletter has been implemented. Legislative action forms for our patients to sign and forward to their representatives have been distributed. Free practice listings on our website are part of our push to make NCMS relevant to all our doctors. Our membership and member benefits committee chairs Drs. Burton Glass and Ellen Braunstein are developing programs for our members which will provide attractive financial, practice management, insurance and legal benefits. Dr. Michael Brisman, chair of our Young Physicians, and Media and Communications Committees is organizing a series of programs for our younger doctors and has been instrumental in making the NACMED Bulletin a self-funded organ. Goals are mileposts, which help us to see where we are, where we’ve been and where we’re going. Our NCMS has been here for eighty-four years. State and County membership was required for state medicine licensure back then. Collecting dues was a given since all Nassau County doctors were required to become members. Today that is no longer the case. We need to continue to be relevant to our doctors, even if our hands are tied. We can’t negotiate for them or advise them to act collectively for economic, social or political issues because of stringent laws that treat us differently than other organizations. These obstacles don’t hamper non-doctor associations, businesses and institutions. Our Medical Societies must organize to keep our patients informed of the consequence of our marginalization. Ultimately our patients are best served when their doctors are in an environment where they can provide care without the fear that they will be unable to survive economically. Our membership will grow if we can get our doctors to see that we are making a difference now. Flooding our legislators with emails and letters demonstrating the need for collective negotiation with HMOs and insurers will go a long way. Let’s get the job done and reverse these one sided laws and take back our profession. That’s a goal I’d like to see become a reality. All the work, which our executive board mandates is carried out by our full time staff headed by our executive director Mark Cappola and associate executive director Betty Dowling, I am grateful to them and my fellow board members who encouraged me and supported our programs for this year. I look forward to working with them and our new President Robin Scarlata. Arnold S. Prywes, M.D.
The Nassau County Department of Health’s revised Lyme Disease and Other Tick-Borne Illnesses brochure is now available for physicians to distribute to their patients. This brochure contains important information for people who enjoy outdoor activities. It contains strategies for preventing tick bites, avoiding tick infested areas and information about tick-borne diseases. The brochure is available online at the Nassau County Department of Health website: www.co.nassau.ny.us/health or by contacting the Health Department’s Lyme Disease Program coordinator at (516) 571-2006.
The health plans with whom you do business will instruct you as to when you may begin using the NPI in standard transactions. All HIPAA covered entities except small health plans must begin using the NPI on May 23, 2007; small health plans have until May 23, 2008. For additional information, to complete an application, and to access educational tools, visit their website: https://nppes.cms.hhs.gov
BILL TO LICENSE RADIOLOGIC TECHNOLOGISTS IN ASSEMBLY CODES COMMITTEE
MSSNY MAKES PUSH TO ASSURE PAYMENT FOR EMERGENCY CARE All physicians are urged to contact their State Senators and Governor Pataki to urge for the enactment of legislation (S.5578, Bonacic) which would assure that physicians are reimbursed for the emergency health care which they render to intoxicated drivers. Current law permits No-Fault insurers to deny coverage in these instances despite the fact that federal and state law require that care be given to these patients. Identical legislation previously passed the Assembly (A.5158, Dinowitz). The Senate and Assembly passed a similar measure in 2001, but it was vetoed by the Governor. While the current legislation has been revised to address many of the concerns raised when the bill was vetoed in 2001, the Executive still has expressed concerns about the measure should it be approved by both Houses again. A letter to your legislators and the Governor in support of this measure can be sent from the MSSNY Grassroots Action Center at www.mssny.org or directly at http://capwiz.com/mssny/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7517511
In the Senate, Joan Hayner, Chief Administrative Officer for Capital Care and John Lutz, CEO of Prime Care Physicians, have joined MSSNY staff in several meetings with Senate Insurance Committee members over the last two weeks to demonstrate to the committee the extent of the problem. In related news, Excellus Health Plan this week became the fourth health plan in New York State via settlement with organized medicine to establish a reasonable time limit on demanding overpayment refunds from physicians. Aetna, Cigna and HealthNet have also established time limits of 12 - 24 months. Together these four companies cover over 25% of the 4.5 million New Yorkers enrolled in HMOs. Your action is needed to help advance this legislation in the Senate. Please take a minute to visit the MSSNY Grassroots Action Center at http://www.mssny.org or directly at http://capwiz.com/mssny/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7477101 to send a letter to your legislators in Albany and urge them to enact legislation to stop this unfair practice by the insurance industry.
A recent report by Jury Verdict Research demonstrates the growing severity of the medical malpractice problem nationally. The report shows that the average medical malpractice award jumped almost 70% from 1998-2003, from $2.78 million in 1998 to $4.72 million in 2003. The report also shows that the median jury award jumped at a similar rate, from $700,000 in 1998 to $1,200,000 in 2003. As physicians know, the problem is even more acute in New York where the 2005 New York Verdict Survey shows that New York medical liability verdicts and settlements continue their rapid rise. Between 1998 and 2004, the average medical liability verdict in New York State was an astounding $7.4 million, compared to $5.7 million over the period 1997-2002. The data also showed that these rapidly rising verdicts caused settlements to spike as well – the settlement median was $987,500 between 1998 and 2004, compared to $890,000 between 1997-2002. These data provide further proof why the cost of liability insurance for most physicians has increased 34-50% in the last three years, and why physicians fear double-digit increases in their premiums when they are set by the Insurance Superintendent this July. Physicians are urged to call the MSSNY “tort reform hotline” at 1-866-728-3397 to send a message to Governor Pataki, Assembly Speaker Silver and Senate Majority Leader Bruno in support of meaningful liability reform. Physicians may also go the MSSNY Grassroots Action Center at http://capwiz.com/mssny/issues/alert/?alertid=19559 to send a message to their elected officials in support of meaningful liability reform. Of course, MSSNY continues to seek your financial assistance to support an invigorated public relations campaign to change the current political dynamic and enact medical liability reform in New York. Please go to the MSSNY website to learn more about the “Campaign for Change”.
June 2, 2005 TO: All MSSNY Physicians FROM: Gerard L. Conway, Esq., Vice President Division of Governmental Affairs SUBJ: Professional Discipline Many physicians across the state are in receipt of a postcard sent to them by an organization calling itself the “Committee for OPMC Reform.” This group is represented by the individual who staffs an organization dubbed the “Foundation for the Advancement of Innovative Medicine” which defines innovative medicine as a “treatment or therapy of empirical clinical benefit that is yet outside the mainstream of conventional medicine.” The postcard sent by this organization describes MSSNY as not being actively engaged on current legislative activities related to the OPMC process. Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that MSSNY remains extremely pro-active in its advocacy efforts to assure greater protection for physicians in all facets of the professional discipline process. MSSNY has championed this issue over the years and has achieved much success in assuring that practicing physicians participate in every phase of the process and in establishing significant protections for physicians. We continue to work hard, furthermore, to improve the process. MSSNY leadership and the Division of Governmental Affairs staff have been actively involved in all of the current legislative and regulatory activity on this issue. We remain in ongoing dialogue with all of the involved Senate, Assembly and the Executive leadership and will work to assure that further improvements to the discipline process emanate from these discussions. Please feel free to contact the Division of Governmental Affairs at (518)-465-8085 if you have any questions regarding the status of our advocacy efforts on this important topic.
According to a recent AMA survey, 38% of physicians will decrease the number of new Medicare patients they accept due to the first Medicare payment cut scheduled to take place in 2006. If the 2006 cut is imposed, Medicare payment will fall 16% below the government’s measure of practice cost inflation. And that is just the tip of the iceberg, as the vast majority of cuts are scheduled to come after 2006. The 2005 Medicare Trustees Report projected sharp Medicare physician payment cuts of 26% over six years beginning in 2006. That same Medicare Trustees Report indicates the cost of running a practice and caring for patients will increase 15% during that time. Medicare payments to physicians already seriously lag behind the increasing cost of providing medical care. If Congress fails to act soon, physician payment cuts of 26% over six years will be devastating to the physician foundation of Medicare. The impending Medicare cuts are the result of the government's flawed physician payment formula that defies logic and ignores economic reality. MedPAC, the commission that advises Congress on Medicare policy, has long recommended replacing this formula with one tied to physicians’ actual practice costs. The bill introduced by Reps. Shaw and Cardin implements MedPAC’s recommendations and helps keep the Medicare program strong for America’s seniors and disabled. As noted previously, physicians should access the grassroots action center at http://capwiz.com/mssny/mail/oneclick_compose/?alertid=7366981 to send a letter to their Representative and Senators urging action to fix the Medicare payment system, or at www.ama-assn.org/grassroots.
Watch Your Mail For Further Announcements After nearly 40 years of operation as the premier medical library on Long Island, the John N. Shell Library was closed on May 1 to begin a transition to a virtual library. A consultant had been brought in to evaluate our hard copy collection and to guide us with regard to retention of rare and valuable publications that are in our possession, and for the disposal of over 30,000 textbooks and medical journals on hand. After several inquiries, we were advised that the likelihood of finding an organization willing to take our entire collection was not likely. The availability of information on the internet from global sources on virtually every medical topic has made the use of hard copy textbooks and journals increasingly obsolete. However, we know that many of our members still retain, and desire to maintain collections of either textbooks or journals pertaining to their specialties. So, we want to give you an opportunity to come in and browse through the collection, and to take whatever books or journals you want with the exception of those designated by the Academy Board of Trustees to be retained by the Academy. The following guidelines apply to the removal of hardcover texts and journals:
The Library holds a significant collection of medical publications which we know would be of value to you. We encourage you to come by and browse the collection. This may be your only opportunity to obtain that hard-to-find textbook, missing journal needed to complete your collection, or just a book that looks like an interesting read. After our members have access to the collection, the Library will open its doors to non-member physicians and other groups. So we encourage you to come during this members-only period and get the best selection. AN ANNOUNCEMENT WILL BE MADE SOON REGARDING THE DATES AND TIMES
Is Your Site
Linked to Ours? HERE IS WHAT YOU WILL FIND AT WWW.NACMED.ORG
Nassau County Medical Society's web site has all this information for you at your fingertips.
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Starting
May 23, 2005, all health care providers can apply for their National
Provider Identifier (NPI). The NPI will replace health care provider
identifiers in use today in standard health care transactions. 
A.4882-A
(Pretlow), a bill that would license radiographers, radiation therapists
and nuclear medicine technologists, and establish standards of
education, training and experience, is in the Assembly Codes Committee.
This bill would also authorize radiologic technologists, who are
certified by the department of health to perform this function, to
inject intravenous contrast media. The New York State Radiological
Society supports this bill. Physicians are urged to call their Assembly
Member to support this bill which MSSNY also supports. Identical
legislation (S.5606, Hannon) is before the Senate Rules Committee. 
MSSNY
continues in its push for legislation that would establish reasonable
limits on the time within which a health plans can demand a refund from
a physician. This week, the Assembly Insurance Committee
favorably reported legislation (A.3106, Sweeney/S.1987, Maziarz) that
would limit to 180 days the time within which a health plan can demand a
refund from a health care provider. The bill has advanced for
consideration by the Assembly Codes Committee. 
Representatives
Clay Shaw (R-FL) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) have introduced H.R. 2356, the
Preserving Patient Access to Physicians Act of 2005. This important bill
would stop the impending Medicare physician payment cuts and replaces
the flawed physician payment formula. To date, Representatives Edolphus
Towns (D-Kings) and Maurice Hinchey (D-Saugerties) are the members of
the New York delegation who have cosponsored the legislation. Many more
cosponsors are needed to show their support for the bill. Click on 