You Practice Medicine, We Do the Rest...
The Alameda-Contra Costa Medical Association
(ACCMA) is a professional association of East Bay
physicians who are dedicated to improving the quality and accesibility of our health care system. The
ACCMA supports physicians and patients in
numerous ways. We invite you to explore our website
and learn how the ACCMA can help you.
- Physicians Pressure Congress to Stop Medicare Cuts
- Organized medicine has turned its attention to resolving the Medicare SGR problem and the 21% Medicare cuts facing physicians in March. Read more...
- Information on Volunteering in Haiti
- Information for physicians who are interested in volunteering in Haiti. Read more...
- Tell Blue Shield to Stop Publishing Faulty Physician Ratings!
- Blue Shield is planning to publish results from the faulty CPPI program, a flawed medical quality reporting program that rated some 13,000 physicians based only on superficial review of claims data. Read more...
- CMA Opposes Senate Health Reform Bill
- CMA has taken an oppose position on the U.S. Senate's health reform bill (HR 3590) because it fails to deliver meaningful health reform according to the principles developed by physicians. Read more...
- H1N1 Influenza Update
- Physicians must go online to preregister and order vaccine from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), which will serve as the sole distribution point for H1N1 vaccine in California. Read more...
- FTC "Red Flag Rule" Delayed Again to June 1
- The FTC has delayed to June 1, 2010, a requirement that physicians must implement identity theft prevention programs. Find guidance for physicians and sample policies in the online compliance center. Read more...
- Health Information Technology Update
- Updated information and resources for physicians to plan for Health Information Technology and to participate in the CMS electronic prescribing program. Read more...
- CMA Sues Medical Board to End Furloughs
- CMA filed a lawsuit seeking to end furloughs for Medical Board of California staff, which have caused a buildup of unprocessed license applications. Read more...
- Blue Cross/Blue Shield Physician Data Stolen
- More than 10,000 physicians statewide were notified by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California that their Social Security Number, taxpayer ID, and NPI numbers may have been compromised. Read more...
- ACCMA Election Results
- Download a copy of the results of the elections for 2010 ACCMA officers, councilors and alternate councilors. Read more...
- Legislature Agrees to Healthy Families Solution
- The California Legislature passed and the Governor signed legislation to avoid disenrolling as many as 600,000 kids from the Healthy Families program. Read more...
- Blue Cross Announces Changes
- Anthem Blue Cross changes fee schedule, reimbursement policies and introduces new claim editing software. Read more...
- CMA Stops Bill to Erode Corporate Practice of Medicine
- CMA ensures that SB 726 - a bill eroding the ban on the corporate practice of medicine in California by allowing certain hospitals to hire physicians - will not be voted on this year. Read more...
- HHS Requires Notification of Breach of Personal Info
- HHS has issued regulations that could impose significant burdens on a physicianâs practice to respond to an actual or suspected breach of unsecured protected health information. Read more...
- Medicare Audits Go Nationwide this Fall
- CMS will be expanding the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program, designed to identify fraud and waste in the Medicare system, to all 50 states by the end of the year. Read more...
- Dept. of Insurance Proposes to Halt Illegal Rescissions
- Dept of Insurance recently introduced much needed regulations that would end the illegal practice of insurers cancelling individual health insurance coverage after policyholders utilize coverage. Read more...
- Physicians Urged to Verify Quality Data
- 25,000 physicians will receive their latest quality performance results from the California Physician Performance Initiative (CPPI) and are encouraged to verify the accuracy of the data used. Read more...
- New Medicare Enrollment Rules Onerous for Physicians
- New rules took effect April 1 that could result in physicians not being paid if they fail to meet Medicare's new strict timelines for providing notification of practice changes. Read more...
- CMA Protects MICRA - Again!
- A court of appeals has sided with CMA to uphold MICRA, California's model tort reform system. Read more...
- CMA Defeats Scope of Practice Bills
- CMA recent killed two bills that would have significantly expanded the scope of practice of pharmacists and physical therapists. Read more...
- CMA Gets Long Sought Audit of Medi-Cal TAR Program
- CMA won legislative approval for an audit of the Medi-Cal Treatment Authorization Request (TAR) process, which diverts much needed funds from actual health care. Read more...
- HealthNet Clarifies Review Policy for Consultations
- At CMA's urging, HealthNet has clarified a new onerous documentation requirement for consultations. Read more...
- Hot Topic: Palmetto Transition
- Collected information from the ACCMA to help physicians with the transition from NHIC to Palmetto as the Medicare administrator in California. Read more...
- HHS Pushes ICD-10 Deadline to 2013
- The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has agreed to put off ICD-10 implementation for two additional years until Oct. 1, 2013. Read more...
- IMQ Seeks Primary Care Docs for Review Committees
- IMQ, a subsidiary of the CMA, is seeking primary care physicians to serve on Judicial Review Committees (JRC) for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) Read more...
- Medical Board Changes CME Reporting Requirements
- Effective January 1, physicians are now required to complete 50 CME hours during every two-year licensure period. Previously, physicians were required to complete 100 hours every four years. Read more...
- "Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment" Legally Recognized
- California law gives "Physicians Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment" (POLST) equal status to DNR orders. The POLST form has been endorsed by the ACCMA and the CMA. Read more...
- Blue Shield Will Reprocess Improperly Denied Claims
- Blue Shield of California has agreed to automatically reprocess claims that were incorrectly denied because it failed to add the new 2009 CPT codes into its system. Read more...
News
- Focus on Medicare SGR
- Organized medicine has turned its attention to resolving the Medicare SGR problem and the 21% Medicare cuts facing physicians in March.
- Blue Shield to Publish Ratings
- Blue Shield is planning to publish results from the faulty CPPI program, a flawed medical quality reporting program that rated some 13,000 physicians based only on superficial review of claims data.
- H1N1 Update
- Physicians must go online to preregister and order vaccine from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), which will serve as the sole distribution point for H1N1 vaccine in California.