
Septermber 6 2012
New in this Issue AAPM Report Dose Calculation for Photon-Emitting Brachytherapy Sources with Average Energy Higher than 50 keV: Full Report of the AAPM and ESTRO AAPM, SDAMPP, CAMPEP and ABR MOU MOU on the Relative roles of SDAMPP, AAPM, CAMPEP, and ABR for the Education of Medical Physicists in the United States Joint Commission Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Hospital Deeming Requirements - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the hospital manual to maintain alignment with requirements from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) following the release of a final rule in May 2012. Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Critical Access Hospital Deeming Requirements - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the critical access hospital manual to maintain alignment with Conditions of Participation from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) following the release of a final rule in May 2012. Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Standards Changes in Response to California Law for Organizations Conducting Computed Tomography (CT) Exams - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the ambulatory care, critical access hospital, and hospital manuals in response to a California law for organizations conducting computed tomography (CT) exams. Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - New and Revised Standards for Ambulatory Surgery Centers - Revisions to Joint Commission requirements for ambulatory surgical centers that elect to use The Joint Commission deemed status option to align with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements. Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Revisions to Behavioral Health Care Standards to Reduce Redundancy - Deletions and modifications to elements of performance (EPs) in the "Care, Treatment, and Services" (CTS) chapter to reduce redundancy. Medicare Cost of 10-Year Medicare Physician Pay Freeze Decreases to $245B AAPM Supports Revaluation of Weekly Medical Physics Consultation Code 77336 AAPM Submits Comments on 2013 Hospital Outpatient Proposed Rule NCRP NCRP releases Report 171 - Uncertainties in the Estimation of Radiation Risks and Probability of Disease Causation	To submit articles for future e-News, please email 2012.enews@aapm.org Make a Tax deductible contribution to AAPM’s Education & Research Fund Meetings Calendar Chapter Meetings: September 2012 - April 2013 RSNA 2012: Registration and Housing Open for AAPM and RSNA Members AAPM Website Updates AAPM Newsletter - New Edition Now Available Featured interviews from the AAPM Annual Meeting Comments Requested ACR-AAPM Technical Standard For Management of the Use of Radiation in Fluoroscopic Procedures Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) Module and Training Webinar Available to NIH Grantees 2013 AAPM Annual Meeting (Indianapolis IN) - Request for Proposals (RFP) for Symposia American Board of Radiology Implements ‘Continuous Certification’ ABR announces temporary acceptance of applications from medical physics students in non-CAMPEP-accredited educational programs CRCPD announces publication of NEXT Computed Tomography 2005-06 Trifold Awards & Honors Committee - Call for Nominations
Career Services & Committee Classifieds Career Services Ads as of September 6, 2012 AAPM Committee Classifieds as of September 6, 2012
Medicare Cost of 10-Year Medicare Physician Pay Freeze Decreases to $245B The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently reported that freezing Medicare physician payments for the next decade would cost the federal government $245 billion, a substantially lower estimate than the $316 billion cost estimated in January... [see full article] AAPM Supports Revaluation of Weekly Medical Physics Consultation Code 77336 AAPM recently submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the 2012 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), which includes payment policy for physicians and freestanding cancer centers. Specifically, AAPM supports review and revaluation of the Continuing Medical Physics Consultation code 77336, which was last reviewed for the 2003 MPFS... [see full article] AAPM Submits Comments on 2013 Hospital Outpatient Proposed Rule In an August 29th letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), AAPM submitted comments on the following 2013 proposals that apply to radiation oncology and medical physics services provided in a hospital outpatient department: AAPM does not support the geometric mean-based relative payment weight proposal. AAPM supports the proposal to unpackage intraoperative radiation therapy codes (IORT) 77424 and 77425 and pay them separately beginning in 2013. AAPM recommends that CMS maintain the current 2012 APC assignments for proton beam therapy codes 77520, 77522, 77523, and 77525 for 2013. AAPM supports the CMS proposal to pay hospitals for the additional cost of using Tc-99m from a non-highly enriched uranium source. To view the AAPM comment letter to CMS click here.
The AAPM E-News is a collection of news and information that affects the field of Medical Physics. To unsubscribe from this mailing, click here.

Septermber 6 2012

New in this Issue

AAPM Report

Dose Calculation for Photon-Emitting Brachytherapy Sources with Average Energy Higher than 50 keV: Full Report of the AAPM and ESTRO

AAPM, SDAMPP, CAMPEP and ABR MOU

MOU on the Relative roles of SDAMPP, AAPM, CAMPEP, and ABR for the Education of Medical Physicists in the United States

Joint Commission

Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Hospital Deeming Requirements - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the hospital manual to maintain alignment with requirements from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) following the release of a final rule in May 2012.
Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Critical Access Hospital Deeming Requirements - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the critical access hospital manual to maintain alignment with Conditions of Participation from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) following the release of a final rule in May 2012.
Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Standards Changes in Response to California Law for Organizations Conducting Computed Tomography (CT) Exams - Revisions to elements of performance (EPs) in the ambulatory care, critical access hospital, and hospital manuals in response to a California law for organizations conducting computed tomography (CT) exams.
Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - New and Revised Standards for Ambulatory Surgery Centers - Revisions to Joint Commission requirements for ambulatory surgical centers that elect to use The Joint Commission deemed status option to align with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements.
Posted: Aug 27, 12 - Prepublication Standards - Revisions to Behavioral Health Care Standards to Reduce Redundancy - Deletions and modifications to elements of performance (EPs) in the "Care, Treatment, and Services" (CTS) chapter to reduce redundancy.

Medicare

Cost of 10-Year Medicare Physician Pay Freeze Decreases to $245B

AAPM Supports Revaluation of Weekly Medical Physics Consultation Code 77336

AAPM Submits Comments on 2013 Hospital Outpatient Proposed Rule

NCRP

NCRP releases Report 171 - Uncertainties in the Estimation of Radiation Risks and Probability of Disease Causation

To submit articles for future e-News, please email
2012.enews@aapm.org

Make a Tax deductible contribution to AAPM’s Education & Research Fund

Meetings Calendar

Chapter Meetings:
September 2012 - April 2013

RSNA 2012: Registration and Housing Open for AAPM and RSNA Members

AAPM Website Updates

AAPM Newsletter - New Edition Now Available

Featured interviews from the AAPM Annual Meeting

Comments Requested ACR-AAPM Technical Standard For Management of the Use of Radiation in Fluoroscopic Procedures

Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) Module and Training Webinar Available to NIH Grantees

2013 AAPM Annual Meeting (Indianapolis IN) - Request for Proposals (RFP) for Symposia

American Board of Radiology Implements ‘Continuous Certification’

ABR announces temporary acceptance of applications from medical physics students in non-CAMPEP-accredited educational programs

CRCPD announces publication of NEXT Computed Tomography 2005-06 Trifold

Awards & Honors Committee - Call for Nominations

Career Services & Committee Classifieds

Career Services Ads as of September 6, 2012

AAPM Committee Classifieds as of September 6, 2012

Medicare

Cost of 10-Year Medicare Physician Pay Freeze Decreases to $245B

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently reported that freezing Medicare physician payments for the next decade would cost the federal government $245 billion, a substantially lower estimate than the $316 billion cost estimated in January... [see full article]

AAPM Supports Revaluation of Weekly Medical Physics Consultation Code 77336

AAPM recently submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the 2012 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), which includes payment policy for physicians and freestanding cancer centers. Specifically, AAPM supports review and revaluation of the Continuing Medical Physics Consultation code 77336, which was last reviewed for the 2003 MPFS... [see full article]

AAPM Submits Comments on 2013 Hospital Outpatient Proposed Rule

In an August 29th letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), AAPM submitted comments on the following 2013 proposals that apply to radiation oncology and medical physics services provided in a hospital outpatient department:

AAPM does not support the geometric mean-based relative payment weight proposal.
AAPM supports the proposal to unpackage intraoperative radiation therapy codes (IORT) 77424 and 77425 and pay them separately beginning in 2013.
AAPM recommends that CMS maintain the current 2012 APC assignments for proton beam therapy codes 77520, 77522, 77523, and 77525 for 2013.
AAPM supports the CMS proposal to pay hospitals for the additional cost of using Tc-99m from a non-highly enriched uranium source.

To view the AAPM comment letter to CMS click here.

The AAPM E-News is a collection of news and information that affects the field of Medical Physics. To unsubscribe from this mailing, click here.