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May 2012
Save the date: Partnership meetings in Lake County on June 28
In preparation for its likely expansion into Lake County, Partnership HealthPlan has scheduled two meetings with local physicians on Thursday, June 28. The first is a lunch meeting in Clearlake and the second is a dinner meeting in Lakeport. During the meetings, officials from Partnership will describe their county organized health system and answer questions. All practicing physicians in Lake County are invited to attend. Details about times and locations will be announced next month.
MLCMS wage/benefit surveys and election ballots due May 31
MLCMS election ballots will be mailed to all members during the first week of May and are due back by May 31. Members will also be receiving a staff wage and benefit survey. Physicians can use the results of this confidential survey to help manage their practice. Results will be sent by first-class mail, marked “confidential,” only to physicians who complete the survey. In other words, if you want to see the results, you must complete the survey.
Dr. Mark Luoto, a Ukiah emergency medicine physician, has been nominated as MLCMS president-elect for 2012-13. Others nominated to the MLCMS board of directors are Drs. Bruce Andich (secretary/treasurer), Brian Hanson and John Williams. The nominees will join Dr. Jay Joseph on the board.
The nominees for the CMA delegation are Drs. Bruce Andich and Jay Joseph. For more information, contact Cynthia Melody at cmelody@mlcms.org or 707-525-4375.
Nine applicants vying for MLCMS Health Careers Scholarship
Nine local students have submitted applications for the annual $5,000 MLCMS Health Careers Scholarship. The medical society is currently reviewing the applications and will announce a winner later this month. The scholarship is intended for local high school seniors who are planning a career in medicine.
Physicians invited to interview congressional candidates on health policy
North Bay physicians will have a chance to pose health policy questions to candidates for the reconfigured 2nd Congressional District at a May 17 candidate interview sponsored by the Marin Medical Society. A dozen candidates are running for the seat currently occupied by Rep. Lynn Woolsey, who is retiring next year after two decades in Congress.
The candidate interview will run from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Wilkes-Weseman Conference Center at Novato Community Hospital.
Because of redistricting, Woolsey’s old congressional district, which was confined to Marin and Sonoma counties, will soon extend all the way up to Oregon, with the important exceptions of Santa Rosa and Rohnert Park. Those towns will shift to the 5th District, where incumbent Rep. Mike Thompson is running without significant opposition.
The leading candidates for Woolsey’s seat include Assemblyman Jared Huffman, activist Norman Solomon and businesswoman Stacey Lawson. Because of the new Open Primary Act, all candidates--Democratic, Republican and other--compete in the June primary. The two who receive the most votes move to the November election, regardless of party affiliation.
The May 17 candidate interview is intended for physicians, who are invited to submit health policy questions beforehand by sending an email by May 14 to Cynthia Melody at cmelody@scma.org. The format will be a panel interview, with each candidate answering each question in turn. Dr. Peter Bretan, president of the Marin Medical Society, will moderate the interview.
Calling all photographers! Cover photo needed for MLCMS Directory
Do you have a high-resolution digital photo of Mendocino or Lake counties that you’d like to share with your colleagues? If so, please email the photo to Steve Osborn at sosborn@scma.org for possible use on the cover of the 2012-13 Mendocino-Lake Physician Directory, which will be published in June.
The photo needs to be vertically oriented and should have a file size of at least 3 megabytes. The final print size of the directory is 6.5 inches wide by 9 inches tall. Subject matter is wide open, but photos must be taken within Mendocino or Lake counties. The deadline is May 15. For more information, contact Steve at 707-525-0101 or sosborn@scma.org.
DocBookMD expands to entire North Bay
MLCMS members can now use the DocBookMD mobile app to send HIPAA-compliant messages to their colleagues throughout the North Bay. The new, regional version includes medical society members in Mendocino, Lake, Marin, Sonoma, Napa and Solano counties.
Getting started with DocBookMD is simplicity itself. Just follow the instructions below.
1. Download the free DocBookMD app from the iTunes App Store or Android Market to your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Android phone.
2. Click on Register.
3. Enter your email address.
4. Enter your state (CA) and county (Lake or Mendocino).
5. Enter your CMA/MLCMS ID number. (Call 707-525-4375 if you need your number.)
6. Create a password.
7. Answer sponsor questions.
8. Complete the HIPAA compliance agreement.
That’s it! Once you’re registered, you can send messages, images and more to your medical society colleagues throughout the North Bay. For more details, visit www.DocBookMD.com. DocBookMD is supplied at no charge to MLCMS members thanks to the sponsorship of NORCAL Mutual Insurance.
Top stories from CMA Alert
MEDICAL FACILITIES
Sutter Lakeside Hospital plans to close its Lakeport pain clinic and its Upper Lake primary care clinic in the coming weeks because of budget deficits. About 10% of the hospital’s employees will be laid off as a result. The cutbacks come amid continuing grim economic times for Lake County, which has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
RESOURCES
There will be eight CMA webinars during May, including four for CEU credit. All webinars begin at 12:15 p.m. and run until 1:15 or 1:45. To register, visit www.cmanet.org. Seminars are free for CMA members and their staff; cost for nonmembers is $99 per person. Here’s the lineup for May:
* Medicare audits (May 2; includes CEU)
* Marketing 101 (May 9; includes CEU)
* Telephone etiquette for medical personnel (May 16; includes CEU)
* California workers’ comp eBill--part 1 (May 17)
* Strategic planning for solo and group practices (May 23; includes CEU)
* California workers’ comp eBill--part 2 (May 24)
* California’s changing insurance marketplace (May 30)
* California workers’ comp eBill--part 3 (May 31)
In recognition of the two-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, CMA has launched Reform Essentials, a regular newsletter designed to provide readers with the latest developments in California’s implementation of federal health care reform. The publication is available at www.cmanet.org/resource-library. Future installments of the newsletter will include updates from California's Health Benefit Exchange Board, information on essential health benefits, and other topics related to the Affordable Care Act.
Need help improving practice efficiency and viability? Try a free subscription to CMA Practice Resources (CPR), a monthly bulletin full of tips and tools for physicians and their office staff. To subscribe, visit www.cmanet.org/cpr. The current issue includes articles on HIPAA 5010 enforcement, CPT codes, electronic prescribing, and much more.
ABOUT MLCMS
The Mendocino-Lake County Medical Society, a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association, supports local physicians and their efforts to enhance the health of the community. Founded in 1938, MLCMS is affiliated with the California Medical Association and the American Medical Association.
© 2012 MLCMS, 2901 Cleveland Ave. #202, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
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