Volunteer's Note
One Question
Last Call: Register for Kienböck's Disease Webinar
Morton Kasdan, MD Receives Lofty Distinction for Devotion to Teaching
Where Credit is Due
Listserv Hot Topic: WSJ Article on Doctor Pay and Social Priorities
AMA Membership Update
Thank You to AFSH Donors
US Supreme Court's ACA Decision Raises Questions About Medicaid
Volunteer's Note
Given the current state of health care legislation, it’s perhaps more important than ever for physicians to organize and stay involved in the legislative process.
The mission of the ASSH Government Affairs Committee (GAC) is to help lead this effort and ensure that Hand Society members have a say in decisions that greatly affect them.
Doctors cannot continue to shoulder the costs of health care. The US Government's Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) needs to be repealed or significantly modified. The only way this will happen is if our members put continued pressure on their elected representatives. ASSH members need to contact their representatives and senators and tell them that the legislation as presently written is unfair to practicing physicians.
Since the implementation of the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate in 1997, inflation has continued to weaken the value of the dollar, while doctors’ reimbursement has essentially remained flat. The additional burden of an IPAB cut in reimbursement will make it potentially untenable for doctors to continue to practice in the manner to which they are accustomed. The additional burden of an IPAB cut would be the death knell of independent private practice medicine.
The GAC is sponsoring a symposium at this year’s
ASSH Annual Meeting titled
"Health Policy: Practicing Medicine with Increasing Governmental Regulation." I would encourage anyone interested in knowing what changes are in the works and how these changes will affect health care to attend.
In addition, the GAC is partnering with the AAOS Political Action Committee to raise money for political activities. The AAOS PAC will have a booth in the Annual Meeting exhibit hall, and we invite you to come learn more about this important initiative.
Bruce M. Leslie, MDChair, Government Affairs Committee
One Question
Have you purchased a tablet computer this year, and if so, which one?
A. I have not purchased a tablet
B. iPad
C. Android
D. Kindle Fire
E. Other
To submit your answer, visit our
survey site.
Last Call: Register for Kienböck's Disease Webinar
The Hand Society's latest Online Consultation Corner webinar – "Kienböck's Disease" – will take place Monday, July 30, at 8:30 p.m. EST.
This webinar will give registrants an opportunity to review and discuss real cases, with time for questions/answers about examination, diagnosis and treatment.
Moderator Steven Moran, MD, consultants Robert Strauch, MD and Peter Weiss, MD and host Scott D. Lifchez, MD have selected cases from every stage of Kienböck's Disease for this lively discussion of treatment options and outcomes.
Registration closes Monday.
Register now.
Morton Kasdan, MD Receives Lofty Distinction for Devotion to Teaching
Member Morton Kasdan, MD, Clinical Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Louisville School of Medicine, and Chief of Plastic Surgery at the Louisville Veterans Administration Hospital, recently received the University of Louisville's Samuel D. Gross, MD, Distinguished Career of Service Award, which is their Department of Surgery’s highest award.
Dr. Kasdan has previously been the recipient of The Fitzbutler Humanitarian Award, given by Louisville medical students, and the Best Teacher Award, given by Louisville plastic surgery residents. He has received many other awards at the local and national levels.
The following quote is from the Louisville Surgery Residents Dinner program:
"Despite all of his professional accolades and surgical acumen, Dr. Kasdan is best known in the Department of Surgery for his mentoring of our plastic surgery residents and medical students.
"Almost every Sunday of the year, he hosts groups of medical students in his own (home) to teach them how to suture. He takes time to teach our trainees not only about being a skilled plastic surgeon, but also a compassionate physician.
"Dr. Kasdan imparts two pieces of valuable advice to his students: Learn something every day, and be the nicest person in the room."
Congratulations, Dr. Kasdan!
Where Credit is Due
Many of our members are achieving great things and winning awards for their contributions to upper extremity care, and we'd like to provide a place to celebrate those accomplishments.
The ASSH staff invites you to share professional news about yourself or fellow members for publication in Weekly Member Update.
To give credit where credit is due, send news and links to
amitchell@assh.org.
Not surprisingly, the topic sparked a lively and interesting discussion. One member described the article as a "MUST READ," and several shared tales of their children who are working on Wall Street and the pros and cons of each career path.
If you have already signed up for the ASSH Physician Listserv, you can read the WSJ article and contribute to the discussion by visiting the archives and scrolling down to the thread titled "Doctor Pay and Social Priorities." If you don't know or remember your Listserv password, you can reset your password here.
To sign up for the Listserv, visit the Listserv page.
AMA Membership Update
AMA rules stipulate that in order to qualify for a seat in the AMA House of Delegates, 25% of our members must be AMA members. We are seven members shy of the 25% mark, following a week in which the ASSH Central Office received no notifications of Hand Society members who've recently joined or rejoined the AMA.
Have you joined or rejoined the AMA since January 1, 2012? Please let us know by contacting amitchell@assh.org so we can track the progress of your AMA membership. ASSH will reconcile our membership list with the AMA to get credit for our members.
Have your voice heard: Join the AMA.
Thank You to AFSH Donors
Randolph J. Ferlic, MD
Angela Y. Giuffrida, MD
Thomas A. Otter, MD
John M. Stogin, Jr., MD
Health insurance coverage for some of America's poorest patients is uncertain following the Supreme Court of the United States' recent ruling on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which upheld the majority of the law but rendered the Medicaid expansion provision optional.
Read more.