App Offers eRecovery Support for Substance Use Disorder

This app is not a substitute for clinical treatment, rather an additional tool that can help people connect with peers and get additional recovery supports. Through a new partnership, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is making available CHESS Health's proven eRecovery program to help thousands of North Carolinians struggling with substance use…

Is this next for you? First US Hospital Offers Doctor Visit via Hologram

(photo: Holoconnects) Texas hospital is reportedly 1st in US to use holograms for doctor-patient visits (ABC News - Mary Kekatos) -- A Texas hospital could be the first in the United States to use a technology that allows doctors to visit patients via hologram. Crescent Regional Hospital, located in Lancaster -- about 13 miles south of Dallas -- has installed "Holobox," a 3D system that…

App Offers eRecovery Support for Substance Use Disorder

NCDHHS: New App Offers eRecovery Support for Substance Use Disorder

New Mesothelioma Therapy Offers Hope for Highly Fatal Cancer

Medicine used alongside chemotherapy in trials quadrupled three-year survival rates for mesothelioma Scientists have reached a breakthrough in the treatment of mesothelioma, a rare and highly deadly form of cancer that’s linked to asbestos exposure. According to a study published last week, the innovative therapy, which combines a new drug with chemotherapy, increased the median survival of…

New CMS Vaccine Coverage and Payment Toolkit Offers Helpful Guidance

Understand federally funded Vaccines for Children program This new CMS toolkit, Coverage and Payment of Vaccines and Vaccine Administration under Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Basic Health Program (PDF), can help to understand coverage, cost-sharing, and payment for vaccines and vaccine administration. The toolkit addresses the federally funded Vaccines for Children…

The Changing Landscape of Contraception Access. A New Webinar Offers Guidance.

Register Now for Tomorrow's Webinar February 20, noon - 1:30pm The National Academies Standing Committee on Reproductive Health, Equity, and Society will organize a public webinar to examine pressing issues around the accessibility of contraception. Healthcare providers and researchers will talk about the role of healthcare professionals in providing contraception, adolescent access issues, and…

First Child Cured of Brainstem Glioma ‘Offers Real Hope’

New Breakthroughs Are Raising Hope for Terminal Children New breakthroughs are raising hopes of a cure for at least some children diagnosed with the rare brain tumor DIPG (Fred TANNEAU) (AFP - Isabelle Tourne and Daniel Lawler) -- When Lucas was diagnosed with a rare type of brain tumor at the age of six, there was no doubting the prognosis. French doctor…

Tech Giant Offers Virtual and In-Person Health Care in North Carolina

In February, Amazon acquired One Medical, which offers in-office and 24/7 virtual care services, on-site labs, and programs for preventative care, chronic care management, common illnesses, and mental health concerns. Now, Amazon is offering these health care benefits to its Prime members. The One Medical membership is $9 a month (or $99 annually), with the option to add up to five…

Lung Cancer Awareness Event Offers Free Screenings and Resources Tuesday

Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center and Atrium Health Levine Cancer are holding a free lung cancer awareness fair, Tuesday, November 14 from 8 to 11 a.m. at Wake Forest Baptist’s Downtown Health Plaza, located at 1200 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. in Winston-Salem. The free event is open to all adults, regardless of insurance coverage, income level or…

Raleigh Riders offers Tandem Bike Rides for Disabled Adults and Children

A BIKE RIDE IS A WONDERFUL THING You grip the handlebars as tight as you can. Your feet glued to the pedals. The blue sky seems endless, and you can feel the heat of the sun basking on your face as your legs start to move. Your speed picks up and the surroundings become a blur. The wind is whipping around you and your eyes water from the wind’s impact as well as the effort to get…

New State Website Offers Support to Mothers Interested in Breastfeeding

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is announcing the launch of BreastfeedNC.com, a website dedicated to providing comprehensive information and resources to support mothers and families across North Carolina who are interested in breastfeeding. With the launch of BreastfeedNC.com, NCDHHS is creating a user-friendly platform to educate mothers, families and health care…

New Study Offers Solution for Reducing Postpartum Hemorrhage

According to a landmark study published by researchers from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the University of Birmingham, a new solution, known as E-MOTIVE, could provide a major breakthrough in reducing deaths from childbirth-related bleeding. The study, which involved over 200 000 women in four countries, found that objectively measuring blood loss using a simple, low-cost…

NC AHEC Offers Help with Unhealthy Alcohol Use

Unhealthy alcohol use contributes to a range of poor health outcomes. Brief interventions make a difference. Let NC AHEC help you and your practice assess, advise, and assist your patients in a way that works for you and your office. NC AHEC offers practice-based learning at no cost to get you started and a systems approach to ensure your success. Contact NC AHEC today at…

Prepare For The End of PHE: CMS Offers Public Health Emergency Resources

On January 30, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration announced its intent to end the national emergency and public health emergency (PHE) declarations related to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, 2023. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has resources available to help you prepare for the end of the PHE and will continue to execute the process of a smooth operational wind…

AMA Offers Webinar on Dismantling Stigma for All: Addressing Physician and Patient Mental Health and Suicide Risk

Mark your calendars! The AMA is hosting a webinar during National Suicide Prevention Week and registration is open now. Here are the details: Dismantling Stigma for All: Addressing Physician and Patient Mental Health and Suicide Risk Monday, Sept. 8 | 12 p.m. CT As part of National Suicide Prevention Week, this live, interactive forum will connect attendees with industry experts on…

NCMS Supports Governor’s Decision and Offers Recommendations on Transitioning to COVID Endemic

Since March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted and radically changed many behaviors we once considered normal, from the way we shop, work, access health care, and educate children, to the way we interact with neighbors, colleagues, family, and friends. From the onset of the pandemic, the North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) supported the strong mitigation efforts to lessen the…

NCMS Offers Access to PPE

To address the needs of the medical practices we serve statewide, the NCMS has developed a mechanism to procure personal protective equipment (PPE) through group purchasing. This two-pronged effort offers you a chance to place an online order through a joint group purchasing arrangement with the Charleston County (South Carolina) Medical Society and other state and local medical societies to…

NCMS Offers Telemedicine Help Through New Platform “Presence”

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and in an effort to ease the burden on North Carolina’s physicians and patients, the NCMS today is launching a telemedicine platform available to all health care providers in North Carolina at no charge, until the COVID-19 pandemic abates. This custom platform, called Presence, was produced in a collaboration between the NCMS Foundation’s Project OBOT NC and…

Wake County Health Department Offers COVID-19 Help

The Wake County Health Department has compiled a list of Q&As to assist in getting the information health care professionals need about this evolving situation, while also providing a better understanding of public health’s role in working to contain this novel coronavirus. Access that list. Some of the questions addressed in the FAQs include: • What should I do with a patient who is…

PAI Offers Medicare Red Tape Relief Recommendations

The Physician’s Advocacy Institute (PAI), of which North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) CEO Robert W. Seligson is president, sent 24 recommendations to the United States House Ways and Means Committee in response to its Medicare Red Tape Relief Project. The recommendations offer ways to alleviate regulatory burdens faced by physician practices and cover many but not all of the regulatory…

Physician Community Offers Comments on Quality Payment Program Proposed Rule

Physician organizations like the American Medical Association (AMA) and the Physicians Advocacy Institute (PAI), of which North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) CEO Robert W. Seligson serves as President, recently submitted comments on the Quality Payment Program (QPP) proposed rule to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). QPP was established under the Medicare Access and CHIP…

Letter To HHS Secretary Price Offers Feedback on Health Care Regulation

In a recent letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price, MD, the North Carolina Medical Society (NCMS) as one of the member societies of the Physicians Advocacy Institute (PAI) shared ideas on how to improve the efficiency of the health care system by alleviating onerous and expensive regulations on physician practices. The letter, sent from PAI President and NCMS CEO Robert…

CMS Offers More Flexibility In Meeting MACRA Requirements

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced last week it would offer more flexibility for practices in meeting the new Quality Payment Program requirements as the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) legislation is implemented. The Quality Payment Program (QPP), updated annually as part of MACRA, is meant to promote greater value within the health care system.…

NC HealthConnex Offers “How to Connect” Webinar

The NC Health Information Exchange Authority (NCHIEA) or NC HealthConnex is hosting a “How to Connect” call next Monday, May 22 at noon. The hour-long webinar will explain what Health Connex is, the legislative mandate for practices to connect, an explanation of what is required of you during the connection process and an opportunity to ask questions. Learn more and register.

Smart NC Offers Your Patients Health Insurance Help

Next time your staff is struggling to help a patient with their insurance coverage, they can offer the services of Health Insurance Smart NC (Smart NC), a division of the North Carolina Department of Insurance (DOI). Smart NC assists consumers whose health plan has denied coverage for medical services, by filing insurer appeals and arranging for external review by medical professionals as…

Multi-Payer Expo Offers Info and Answers

NCMS' Joe Cupolo (second from left) and Belinda Battle Mckoy (far right) meet with United Healthcare representatives at the Multi-Payer Expo. Over 150 practice administrators and physicians attended the Multi-Payer Expo yesterday, Tuesday, March 21, at the McKimmon Center in Raleigh. The Expo has been taking place periodically throughout the state for the last three years. The event allows…

CMS Offers New Medicare-Medicaid ACO Model Program

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced a new initiative designed to improve the quality of care and lower costs for beneficiaries who are enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid. The Medicare-Medicaid Accountable Care Organization (ACO) Model builds on the current Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) and advances efforts to partner with states in transforming the…

CMS Offers Resource To Help Medicare Beneficiaries Protect Their Privacy

Health care fraud drives up costs for everyone in the health care system. To help your Medicare patients protect against such fraud is to make them aware of how to guard their Medicare number. Fraud schemes often depend on identity thieves getting hold of people’s Medicare numbers, so treat this number should be treated the same as a credit card number. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid…

AMA Offers Proposed Fee Schedule Rule Summaries

The AMA advocacy staff is preparing formal comments on the rules the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released several weeks ago. In the meantime, they have prepared summaries of each of the rules. Read the 2017 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS)/Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) proposed rule summary here, and the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed…

BCBS Offers Rewards for Practices Committed to Quality

Last month Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) began offering a Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) incentive program to support independent primary care practices in achieving PCMH recognition. The program provides a financial incentive upfront to practices that commit to reaching this goal within 15 months. The reward is designed to defray costs associated with attaining PCMH…

NCMS Plan Offers Employee Wellness Resources and Information

The NCMS Plan continues to successfully infuse healthful habits into the culture of NCMS Plan practices through a variety of resources. This helpful article, “Often Ignored: Healthcare Employees' Well-Being,” highlights the special opportunities and challenges that come with empowering those involved in the health care system to move more, eat mindfully and maintain a high quality of life. A few…

Alliant Offers Mental Health Screening Help for Primary Care Practices

Alliant Quality, the Quality Innovation Network – Quality Improvement Organization (QIN-QIO) for North Carolina is recruiting primary care practitioners to improve identification of depression and alcohol use disorder in Medicare beneficiaries. Seniors often have multiple medical problems and take many medications. Yet, symptoms of depression can masquerade as somatic complaints. This new…

CMS Offers Help On ICD-10 Implementation

It’s not too late to get ready for ICD-10 implementation on October 1, 2015. During this Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Connects National Provider Call, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) subject matter experts will present strategies and resources to help you prepare. Also, learn about ICD-10-PCS Section X for new technologies, which will be used by hospitals. A question and…

NCDHHS Updates Xylazine Exposure Guidance

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public Health has updated the 2023 Xylazine Exposure Guidance and offers new insights with immediate implications for clinical practice and frontline public health. Xylazine was first introduced into the NC drug supply nearly three years ago and has become highly prevalent in the illicit opioid supply. In a…

New White House Report: 5 Strategies to Ensure Children Are Safe Online

95% of teens, 40% of kids between 8 and 12 use social media (CNN, Jacqueline Howard) -- When it comes to the online safety of their children, parents could build a family media plan to set expectations, maintain open conversations with their kids about their social media use, choose content that’s developmentally appropriate for their child, set good examples and balance time with and…

NCMB, Wake AHEC join NCMS on CME Series for Opioid Use Prescribers

The North Carolina Medical Board and Wake AHEC, in collaboration with the North Carolina Medical Society and the Addiction Medicine Fellowship program at UNC School of Medicine, have developed an eight-hour CME series that meets the training requirement established by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). This Addiction Medicine Series offers education on a variety of…

988 Crisis Lifeline Answers 10 Million Contacts Since its Debut, NCDHHS Responds to Nearly 190,000

Editor's Note: If you are struggling with mental health issues, the North Carolina Medical Society has a Physician Support Line. Click here for help. After Two Years, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is Answering Millions of Calls, Chats, and Texts (Read to bottom for NCDHHS and NCMS efforts) (CNN) -- Two years after the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline launched, the service has…

New Trial: Magnetic Therapy Might Help Treat Bipolar Disorder

Powerful magnetic stimulation can help treat people with bipolar disorder (HealthDay News, Dennis Thompson) -- Powerful magnetic stimulation can help treat people with bipolar disorder, according to results from a small trial. The therapy, called accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation, involves magnetic waves delivered to specific regions of the brain using an…

NCDHHS Launches Public Dashboard on Enrollment in NC Medicaid

New Dashboard Tracks Monthly Enrollment in NC Medicaid The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) launched a new public dashboard in December 2023 to track monthly enrollment in NC Medicaid for people eligible through expansion. The NC Medicaid Expansion Enrollment Dashboard offers a detailed overview of enrollment trends in adults ages 19-64 who are…

Researchers Study Link Between Vigorous Exercise, Cognition, High-Risk Hypertension Patients

People with high blood pressure have a higher risk of cognitive impairment, including dementia, but a new study from researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that engaging in vigorous physical activity more than once a week can lower that risk. The findings appear online in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association. “We know that…

Local Health System Performs Landmark Heart Valve Surgery

(image credit: Atrium Health) Minimally invasive procedure promises faster recovery and alternative to open-heart surgery CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Atrium Health Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute has successfully completed the first commercial tricuspid clip procedure in the Carolinas, performed in May at Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center. This achievement marks a significant…

Today is Melanoma Monday. Stay Safe with These Skin Cancer Tips.

Today is Melanoma Monday The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) began Melanoma Monday on Monday, May 1, 1995, and has observed it every year since. Melanoma Monday always occurs during Skin Cancer Awareness Month on the first Monday in May. Key facts to know about melanoma Melanoma is the most serious type of skin cancer. In 2024, it’s estimated that more than 200,340 melanomas…

Is Buprenorphine Subject to the STOP Act’s Prescribing Limits?

Recently the North Carolina Medical Board (NCMB) has received inquiries about whether prescriptions for buprenorphine that are written for the treatment of opioid use disorder are subject to prescribing limits established for certain controlled substances by the NC STOP Act of 2017. The answer is, unequivocally, no. The STOP Act places 5-7 day limits only on initial prescriptions for…

Cyberattack on UnitedHealth Firm Forces Doctors to Dig into Personal Savings

Health providers have been struggling with fallout from the Change Healthcare cyberattack (CNBC, Ashley Capoot) -- On a Sunday in early March, Dr. Angeli Maun Akey noticed something peculiar while making payroll for her private practice in Gainesville, Florida: She was missing $19,000. Akey owns and operates a primary care practice that serves around 3,500 patients in the area, many…

UnitedHealth Cyber Attack- How You Can Secure Your Practice

An Update on How to Secure Your Practice after UnitedHealth Cyber Attack On February 21, Blackcat, a ransomware group, accessed Change Healthcare’s systems and 6 TB of data. This included medical and dental records, payment information, and patient information from a variety of Change Healthcare partners. Sentinel, a risk management and benefit solutions company, has offered the following…

8th Annual Pirates vs. Cancer Event Raises $15k at ECU

Volunteers have their hair cut and donated at this year's ECU's Pirates vs. Cancer fundraiser (photo: ECU Photography) ECU medical students lead Pirates vs. Cancer fundraiser for pediatric cancer patients (Published Apr 16 by Kelly Rogers Dilda, Spaine Stephens, ECU University Communications) Over the years, students in the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina…

ECU Names Deans for College of Health and Human Performance, Graduate School

The East Carolina University Board of Trustees approved the appointment of Dr. Nicole Bromfield as dean of the College of Health and Human Performance and Dr. Debra L. Jackson as dean of the Graduate School during its meeting April 12. Dr. Nicole Bromfield Bromfield has been appointed dean of the ECU College of Health and Human Performance, effective July 1. In addition to extensive…

2024 NCMS Candidate Series – Dr. Steven Feldman

2024 NCMS Candidate Series Featuring Dr. Steven Feldman The 2024 North Carolina Medical Society Candidate Series has an exclusive interview featuring Dr. Steven Feldman who is running for North Carolina House District 10. In this episode, Dr. Feldman talks about his desire to reintroduce civility to national politics, the national debt and its impact on healthcare. He also offers…

Celebrating Women’s History Month with Dr. Cheryl Walker-McGill

To help celebrate Women's History Month, NCMS has an in-depth interview with NCMS member Dr. Cheryl Walker-McGill, Executive Producer of the acclaimed documentary "Someone Else's Shoes." The film focuses on the establishment of St. Agnes Hospital, one of the first Black-owned and operated hospitals in Raleigh. It also celebrates the achievements of Black pioneers in the field of healthcare and…

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