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January 21, 2004 |
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Welcome to ACAAI eNews — a bi-weekly aggregated news service
from the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. To be
removed from this distribution list, please see instructions at
bottom. |
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Top
Stories |
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Regulatory
Updates |
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Clinical
Research |
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Distance Learning |
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Association
News |
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Fellows-in-Training |
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Calendar |
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Archive |
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Ninety-two percent of readers responding said the FDA should
require all dietary supplements to undergo the same efficacy and
safety standards as OTC and prescription medications.
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Distance Learning |
From the 2003 ACAAI ANNUAL MEETING
Nov. 7-12, 2003, New Orleans
• Two Symposia Online
Link
• Plenary Sessions CD-ROM and DVD
Link
• XI International Food Allergy Symposium,
General Sessions & Symposia
Audio CD & Audio Tape
Link
From the 2002 ACAAI ANNUAL MEETING
Nov. 15-20, San Antonio
• Five Symposia Online
Link |
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Calendar |
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FEBRUARY
4th World Asthma Meeting (ATS, ERS, ACCP, AAAAI, GINA,
IUATLD, APSR)
Feb. 16-19, Bangkok, Thailand
Email:
siscr@mahidol.ac.th
Link
(pending joint sponsorship)
Asthma and Allergy Society of Virginia:
Current Concepts in Allergy and Asthma
Feb. 21, Richmond, Virginia
E-mail:
ppowers@vaallergy.com
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MARCH
AAAAI Annual Meeting: Visions to the Future
Mar. 19-23, San Francisco
Link
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MAY
Drug Hypersensitivity Conference
May 5-8, Bern, Switzerland
Link
American Thoracic Society 100th International Conference
May 21-29, Orlando, Fla.
Link
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JUNE
XXIII European Academy of Allergology and Clinical
Immunology (EAACI)
June 12-16, 2004
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Link
Aspen Allergy Conference
July 27-31, Aspen
Link
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JULY
A Return to Ancestral Lands:
Allergy Update in Poland
Jointly Sponsored: ACAAI and Polish Society of Allergology
July 31-Aug. 3, Krakow, Poland
Organizing Secretariat: Dr. Chris Stepka
Tel: (0 11 48) 22 851 52 08
Fax: (0 11 48) 22 851 52 10
E-mail:
medbs@poczta.onet.pl
12TH International Congress of Immunology and 4th Annual
Conference of FOCIS
July 18-23, Montreal, Canada
Link
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NOVEMBER
2004 ACAAI Annual Meeting
Nov. 12-17, Boston
Tel: 847-427-1200
Fax: 847-427-1294
E-mail: meetings@acaai.org
Link
WORLD ALLERGY ORGANIZATION SOCIETY MEETINGS
Link
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Top
Stories |
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Asthma doesn't have to lead to poor pregnancy outcomes
Women with asthma, even those whose disease worsens during
pregnancy, are no more likely than women without asthma to
deliver prematurely or have other poor outcomes, according to an
article in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Scientists at St.
John Hospital in Detroit studied three groups of pregnant women:
873 with mild asthma, 866 with moderate-to-severe asthma and 881
without asthma. Throughout pregnancy, subjects were treated
using nationally recommended guidelines. Preterm delivery rates
showed no significant differences among the groups. Women in the
moderate-to-severe group, however, were more likely to develop
diabetes during pregnancy, as well as to deliver via c-section
vs. vaginally.
Ethnicity may be linked to asthmatic
kids' allergy risk
Ethnicity may have an effect on asthmatic children’s risk of
developing multiple allergies, according to a study in Chest.
Researchers in Boston, Hartford, Conn., and Farmington, Conn.,
studied 791 children from age 4 to 18 in Hartford. Puerto Rican
children with asthma were up to three times more likely to have
indoor and outdoor allergies than white children with asthma,
and black children with asthma were two to three times more
likely to have outdoor allergies than white children with
asthma.
Molecule helps asthmatic mice breathe better
Scientists at North Carolina State University in Raleigh
say they have discovered a molecule that helps prevent the
build-up of mucus in asthmatic mice’s airways, according to an
article in Nature Medicine. The molecule, called MANS
peptide, could possibly complement standard therapies used today
to relax the airways.
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 A
word from President Michael Blaiss, M.D.
In this issue of the College eNews, there are two
very important topics for you. In this
downloadable memo and form, Bob Lanier, M.D., chair of
the Nominating Committee, outlines a new procedure for
applying for consideration as an officer in the College.
In the past, individuals interested in leadership
positions in the College contacted members of the
Nominating Committee and let their interests be known.
Unfortunately, that procedure failed to give everyone an
equal shot at expressing his or her interest in being on
the Board of Regents or tract to the presidency. With the
new questionnaire, you now can let the Nominating
Committee know your desire for a leadership role in the
College. Having the standardized questionnaire will allow
the Nominating Committee to fairly evaluate each
candidate’s potential. I encourage you to “put your hat
into the ring.”
Also in this issue, you will find a report from the
College’s AMA representatives who recently attended the
AMA interim meeting. Whether or not you are a member of
the AMA, there are important national interests discussed
at AMA meetings that can affect the allergy community. It
is important that the College be active in voicing our
interests to the AMA. As you will see from Dr. Malick and
Dr. Martin’s report, we have two very capable allergists
representing us in the AMA.
I also want to bring to your attention a very important
College project that is now going into its second year:
the Patient Centered Allergy Practice Program, sponsored
by a non-restricted educational grant from Aventis.
Hopefully, you took part in this program last year and
will find the second year even more useful. Even if you
did not participate last year, I encourage you to join in
this year because the information obtained can be very
valuable to you in practice management. With the growing
issue of physician dissatisfaction in dealing with the
continued increases in overhead and decreases in payments
from managed care and insurance, this program gives you,
the practicing allergist, important tips to help improve
your bottom line. Again this year, you will continue to
receive the bimonthly newsletter with practical
information for practice management. Also, a series of
audio conferences is planned for 2004. Here are some of
the topics:
1. Don’t Get Stuck with Unsafe Needles: Meet OSHA’s New
Requirements
2. How to Make Your Allergy Practice an Employer of Choice
– An 8-Step Approach
3. The Total Service Allergy Practice
4. How to Hire and Fire Legally
5. How to Get More Out of Your Practice Management System
One special audio conference is planned just for
Fellows-in-Training to help them prepare for the world of
private practice. Also scheduled are five regional
seminars devoted to a variety of subjects on practice
management geared to the allergist. The ACAAI wants to be
a partner with you in improving practice management. This
program shows our commitment to you.
Michael Blaiss, M.D.
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Update from the AMA Interim Meeting
Dec. 6-9, 2003, Honolulu, Hawaii
The following are some of the pertinent highlights from
the most recent AMA meeting:
1. Our AMA announced that through its advocacy efforts,
it was successful in halting yet another round of expected
Medicare cuts to physicians. This time change was from
a 4.5 percent decrease to a 1.5 percent increase for
2004-5. The average increase per physician nationally is
expected to be $16,000. Our AMA is continuing its lobbying
efforts for a permanent legislative solution to the faulty
formula currently being used by CMS.
2. Board of Trustees Report 15-Specialty Society
Representation in the House of Delegates-Five Year Review.
The ACAAI is due for its 5-year eligibility review in the
coming year. We will be required to demonstrate amongst
other things that we have enough ACAAI members who are
also AMA members that have selected the ACAAI to represent
them to the AMA. In order to have a seat at the AMA
House of Delegates we need to have a minimum of 250 ACAAI
members who are also AMA members and have 35 percent of
our physician members be AMA members. AMA members need to
designate who they wish to represent them to the AMA. If
they desire that it is their specialty society they need
to inform the AMA. If a designation is not made then the
default is that member’s state medical society. If you
have not made this designation the ACAAI or are not sure,
please do so or check via the AMA website at
www.ama-assn.org or call the AMA at (800) 262-3211.
3. Board of Trustees Report 10-Uses and Abuses of CPT
Modifier-25. The report reviewed the definitions,
guidelines and coding illustrations regarding this topic.
The recommendations called for the AMA to collect
information on its use and acceptance; to educate
physicians on its appropriate use; and to encourage
physicians to make their contract provisions with
third-party payers and make payers adhere to CPT rules
concerning modifiers. The report once published in the
Proceedings on the Interim Meeting 2003 would be an
excellent reference on Modifier-25.
4. Resolution 809-Reimbursement Denial Based Solely on
Specialty. The resolution asks the AMA to actively support
appropriate actions at the state and federal levels to ban
insurers from denying or reducing payment for services
performed by physicians based solely on their specialty,
as well as to actively discourage insurance companies from
restricting professional fee payment based on type of
specialty. This one has mixed blessing for us. We as
allergists would like to be the only ones getting paid for
providing allergen immunotherapy, but we would also like
to get paid for doing rhinolaryngoscopy, skin biopsies,
etc.
5. Resolution 910-Uniform and Consistent Tort Reform. The
resolution reaffirms AMA Policy to make passage of medical
liability reform the highest legislative priority, but
that it not pursue any such legislation that would divide
or diminish the voice of the House of Medicine. For the
near future you will be seeing the AMA concentrating on
realizing this goal.
In all, the AMA House of Delegates reviewed 32 reports and
72 resolutions. More complete details can be found on the
AMA Web site.
Respectfully submitted by,
Alnoor Malick, M.D.
Delegate
Bryan Martin, D.O.
Alternate Delegate |
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Regulatory
Updates |
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Health care spending in 2002 up 9.3 percent
Health care spending in 2002 totaled $1.6 trillion, up 9.3
percent over 2001 and 14.9 percent of the U.S. gross domestic
product, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services. That year, health care spending grew faster than
available resources, the group said, forcing the government,
corporations and consumers to finance these costs. Debate is
ongoing about how to slow this spending.
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Association
News |
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2003 ACAAI Annual Meeting
symposia now online
Now from the comfort of your home or office, you can
virtually attend two online symposia held at the 2003 ACAAI
Annual Meeting in New Orleans available for complimentary
viewing at www.acaai.org.
The online sessions feature streaming audio/video and include
the speakers’ slide presentation. Category 1 CME credit is
available to those who complete the Continuing Medical
Education Quiz.
The symposia are:
• Controversies in Pharmacotherapy of Acute Asthma: A Debate –
Supported by an educational grant from Sepracor, Inc.
• Approach to Chronic Urticaria: From Antihistamines to
Immunomodulators – Supported by an educational grant from
Aventis Pharmaceuticals
Allergy Practice Tip 1: Get
them to smile
Advice from The Patient-Centered Allergy Practice
Friendly employees beget happy patients. Consider hiring
front-end staff based on personality as much as experience.
And hard-working quick learners with good customer service
skills are a must.
These tips are drawn from site visits in practices nationwide,
conducted as part of The Patient-Centered Allergy Practice,
a CME Series in Practice Management, supported through an
unrestricted educational grant from Aventis Pharmaceuticals
and endorsed by the American College of Allergy, Asthma &
Immunology.
Did you miss our last audioconference, “Low Tech, High
Results: Integrating Technology into your Allergy Practice?”
Call 800-781-2211, ext. 102, or e-mail
info@physicianspractice.com for information on accessing
the archived version. |
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Fellows-in-Training |
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Prepared by Warner W. Carr, M.D., a representative of ACAAI’s fellows-in-training (FITs) to the Board of Regents, this department features two sections. Ask An Expert is an occasional feature with a specialist in the field answering a series of FIT-oriented questions on topics of interest to allergists in training. The Board Review Corner is your chance to test your Board preparedness by answering questions drawn from the College’s Board Review Course.
FIT will return next issue. To refer to Board Review Corner and Ask the Expert questions from previous 2003 issues, click the “Archive” link in the left column. |
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