MAG Board members,
I hope you all had a great holiday season.
The following are some noteworthy developments and news…
The Georgia General Assembly will get underway next Monday, January 11. Click here for MAG’s priorities for this year’s legislative session, which include COVID-19 relief, health insurance reform, tax credits for uncompensated care, increasing Georgia’s tobacco tax to improve public health, improving health care in rural areas, addressing Georgia’s declining tort environment, and continuing to support the process to ensure that all Georgians have access to health insurance. MAG will also be prepared to address any scope of practice issues that come up in 2021. Contact Derek Norton at dnorton@mag.org with questions.
CMS recently announced that, “The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (which was signed into law in March 2020) suspended the payment adjustment percentage of 2% applied to all Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) claims from May 1 through December 31 [2020]. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, signed into law on December 27 (last week), extends the suspension period to March 31, 2021.” Click here for AMA’s ‘High-Level Overview of Select Provisions in the Consolidated 2020 Omnibus Legislation’ summary.
CMS also announced that the effective date for e-prescribing for Medicare Part D beneficiaries is January 1, 2021 (i.e., physicians who are not already e-prescribing controlled substances must begin doing so) – but “prescribers who do not implement until January 1, 2022, will still be considered compliant.”
Georgia DPH will begin hosting a weekly webinar for “providers in practices not affiliated with hospitals that will be providing [the COVID-19] vaccine in the near future” to address COVID-19 vaccine distribution in the state and any “specific questions and concerns the clinical community is experiencing” at 12 p.m. this Thursday, January 7. DPH will host these webinars at 12 p.m. on Thursdays until further notice. Physicians should submit questions to Emily.Jones1@dph.ga.gov by 12 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, January 5. There is no need to register for this webinar; simply click here at 12 p.m. on Thursday. Also click here to visit the new ‘MAG COVID-19 Vaccines Resources Center.’
Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King recently posted the final Rules and Regulations for the ‘Surprise Billing Consumer Protection Act’ that went into effect on January 1, 2021. DOI says that it has “chosen to contract with FAIR Health to provide the ‘contracted amount’ as spelled out in the legislation and Rules and Regulations. Click here for Georgia ‘Surprise Billing Consumer Protection Act’ Rules & Regulations. Contact Derek Norton at dnorton@mag.org with questions.
The MAG Insurance Agency reports that the physicians who have obtained one if its medical malpractice policies since October 1 have saved an average of 6.5 percent on their renewal premium. Meanwhile, the MAG Association Health Plan has now grown to 180 covered lives. Click here to get a quote on a MAG Insurance Agency/MedPro medical malpractice policy. Click here to get a quote on a MAG Association Health Plan policy. Contact Ryan Larosa at rlarosa@maginsuranceagency.org with questions.
Be on the lookout for MAG ‘Top Docs’ shows addressing vaccines and vaccine hesitancy in the next week. These will feature MAG members Antonio Rios, M.D., and Carlos del Rio, M.D. (which will be recorded in Spanish) and Andrew Reisman, M.D. Click here to watch past editions of the ‘Top Docs’ show.
MAG continues to facilitate a weekly COVID-19 Zoom call with the chief medical officers of health care systems in the state (who are all MAG members) so they can share information and best practices on dealing with COVID-19 (e.g., surges in hospitalizations and vaccine distribution). Contact Ryan Larosa at rlarosa@mag.org with questions.
MAG President Lisa-Perry Gilkes, M.D., F.A.C.S., will be forming MAG’s issue advisory groups for 2021 in the next week. These groups will serve as a resource for MAG's standing committees. Contact Bethany Sherrer at bsherrer@mag.org with questions.
Please remember that the MAG Board of Directors will meet via Zoom at 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 30. Contact Donna Glass at dglass@mag.org with questions.
The process to hire MAG’s permanent CEO is underway and is expected to be completed by the middle of the year.
And if you have not already done so, please remember to click here to renew your MAG dues for 2021 – keeping in mind that you will need to reset your password to access MAG’s new and improved membership system. Contact Dayna Jackson at djackson@mag.org with questions.
Always feel free to contact me with comments or questions – and we always welcome and value your feedback and suggestions.
The entire MAG team looks forward to supporting you and serving you in 2021.
Thank you,
Tom Kornegay
Interim Executive Director & CEO
Medical Association of Georgia
tkornegay@mag.org
