Newsletter 93 October 2007
Contents
Saint Mary's Health Plans
and PHCN Welcomes CCMS
Malpractice Filings Against Health Care Providers, Jan 2001 – Aug 2007
Southern Nevada
Health Officer Report
The Nevada
Physicians Health Program
Saint Mary's Health Plans and PHCN Welcomes CCMS
By Maureen Henkes, CRSI
Saint Mary’s health Plans
Saint Mary's Health Plans is proud to have been selected
as the preferred health care plans and network for the Clark County Medical
Society. We extend a warm welcome to all
members and their employees and families who have become not only insured
through the SMHP health plans, but also as valued participants in our Preferred
Provider panel, Preferred Health Care Network (PHCN) of more than 2,000
doctors.
Since 1993, SMHP has grown to serve over 44,000 insureds
across northern
Saint Mary's Preferred Health Care Network (PHCN) is a
comprehensive PPO network that offers flexibility, value and superlative
customer service. PPO plans with low
co-payments and easy-to-understand benefits, combined with the personal
attention of our Members' Services staff have made SMHP the choice of
As PHCN continues to expand its network in southern
Your membership in CCMS and the Preferred Health Care
Network also offers exclusive access to the specially designed and discounted
CCMS endorsed medical plans. If you have
not taken the opportunity to join our PHCN provider network, we invite you to
contact us today.
kevin.brizendine@saintmarysreno.com 775-770-6285
and Lois Paynter, Senior Director of Operations, 775-770-6232 lois.paynter@saintmarysreno.com
Be sure to include your name,
specialty, location and contact information to allow us to expedite application
review and approval.
Sign-up
Special year open enrollment
for members and member applicants will begin November 1, 2007 and will close
December 31, 2007 for an effective date of February 1, 2008. If you have not yet received a quote, contact
Clark and Associates at 775-828-4720 or St Mary’s at 888-840-9080 or visit us
at our website at: SaintMarysHealthPlans.comfor a
rate comparison before the deadline.
The renewal will take place June 1, 2008 and will renew every June
thereafter.
President’s Message - October
By Weldon (Don)
This
issue of the
PLI Insurance Premium Costs
The chart and graph (insert) addresses the mature claims-made insurance standard premiums (rate sheet) currently available, to the best of CCMS' office manager Nancy Sommer's ability to obtain current information. Some PLI insurers promised to fax and email current rate sheets, but that information never arrived. Thus, what is presented is the best estimate we could obtain under the circumstances. Only one PLI carrier, Nevada Docs, publishes their rates on their internet site. While these rates are the best information we could obtain, physicians should individually inquire into specific rates available to their practice because most, not all, PLI companies can offer a discount (or surcharge) based on their own underwriting factors.
Two PLI
insurers provide a special discount to CCMS members. Nevada Mutual Insurance Company (Nevada
Mutual) and Physicians Insurance Company of
Nevada
Mutual Insurance Company was formed in the crucible of the recent PLI insurance
crisis. Most of the funds required to
form this company came from loans made by local hospital systems. Almost from its inception, Nevada Mutual
provided a 5% discount to CCMS members.
Under the excellent leadership of Chip Wallace, Executive Director, and
their superb Medical Director, Dan McBride, MD, Nevada Mutual has grown to
provide PLI insurance to more
PIC
Medicus
Insurance Company is a relatively new PLI insurer in
· historical loss experience +/- 25%
· cumulative years of patient experience +/- 10%
· unique characteristics within a classification +/- 25%
· number or type of patient exposures +/- 10%
· medical standards, quality & claim review +/- 10%
· other risk management practices and procedures +/- 10%
· training, accreditation & credentialing +/-10%
· record keeping practices +/- 10%
· utilization of monitoring equipment, diagnostic tests or procedures +/- 10%
For a physician with a good liability history Medicus can offer very competitive insurance rates.
MedPro is
an insurer owned by billionaire Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway Investment
Company. Formerly owned by General
Electric, MedPro is the only insurer in southern
The Doctors Company (TDC) apparently has not reduced
premiums in concert with other PLI insurers in southern
Premier Physicians Insurance Company (PPIC) was formed after the passage of medical tort reform. A physician-owned company, Dr. Warren Volker serves as Medical Director. Dr. Volker indicates that PPIC looks for individuals and medical groups with a good liability history, and therefore is able to offer very competitive rates.
Nevada Docs,
also formed after the passage of medical tort reform, is led by Dr. James Marx,
President. Dr. Marx practices
anesthesiology and pain management in southern
Virtually
all southern
Patients, even those contracted with a Medicare Advantage managed care program and those with Medicare part D, frequently complain about the high cost of medication today. Many patients are surviving on very limited income and need to choose between adequate nutrition and necessary prescription medication. Other patients can afford the prescribed medication, but just hate to pay what they feel are outrageous prices for their meds. A few are just parsimonious and detest being "gouged" by "super-rich" pharmaceutical giants.
There are
some alternatives available to those patients.
In the
On the
other side of the County Line insert is selected, mostly non-generic
pharmaceuticals, comparing their costs at Walmart, Walgreens, CVS Pharmacy, CostCo, and at two (of the nine) Nevada Board of Pharmacy
approved Canadian pharmacies.
Please peruse the insert to compare costs of pharmaceuticals to your patients. For some patients the Medicare Advantage program costs more for their medications than they could purchase outside their program. The approved Canadian approved pharmacies all have contact personnel to discuss costs and shipments. Patients should shop and confirm prices before making purchases.
There are now nine Canadian Pharmacies approved by the Nevada Board of Pharmacy for quality. Those pharmacies and their contact information are as follows:
Hometown Pharmacy, Inc.
Lot
P.O. Box 86
www.hometownmeds.com
Toll free phone: 877-696-6300
Toll free fax: 877-475-9900
Paul Clark, Managing Pharmacist and Contact Person
Extended Care Pharmacy, Ltd.
www.extendedcarepharmacy.com
Toll free phone: 866-266-9955
Fax: 403-291-5480
Andy Troscok, Contact Person
R.F. Drug Store
www.rfdrugstore.com
Toll free phone: 866-412-6262
Toll free fax: 888-955-6337
Richard Moszynski, Contact Person
Granville Pharmacy, Ltd.
www.onlinecanadianpharmacy.com
Toll free phone: 888-730-3338
Fax: 877-919-7347
Dawn Polley, Contact Person
Ultra Care Pharmacy, Ltd.
www.CanadaWayDrugs.com
Toll free phone: 877-507-3061
Toll free fax: 866-308-2272
Fabina Dara, Managing Pharmacist and Contact Person
Health One Pharmacy
Toll free phone: 877-278-5387
Toll free fax: 877-278-5359
Billy Lee, Contact Person
Minit Drugs
www.pharmacy-online.ca
Toll free phone: 877-530-3743
Toll free fax: 866-540-4110
Barney Britton and Robert Rilkoff, Contact Persons
Langdon Drugs, Ltd.
280375 Glenmore Trail S.E.
www.canprescserv.com
Toll free phone: 866-205-8855
Fax: 403-201-2815
Greg Benson, Contact Person
Somi Drugs
www.CanadaSafeRx.com
Toll free phone: 88-580-1456
Fax: 604-580-1455
Omer Ismail, Contact Person
While every reasonable effort was made to maximize accuracy in the pricing on the insert, prices are subject to change and should be confirmed before purchases are made. Nancy Sommer, CCMS' office manager, should be credited for the Herculean task of gathering the information and developing the insert. We hope you will find it useful.
Clark County District Court Medical Malpractice Filings
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Jan 39 33 108 61 41 50 109
Feb 20 14 98 72 63 61
41
Mar 35 30 169 123 64 38
70
Apr 37 34 111 81 70 58
60
May 37 35 126 65 14 71
84
Jun 27 24 103 90 65 83
56
Jul 19 100 114 45 66 74
84
Aug 54 51 76 67 33 82
74
Sep 20 65 105 79 36 51
Oct 37 83 110 59 26 74
Nov 38 184 59 78 73 50
Dec 9 170 67 47 30 28
Sum 372 823 1246 867 581 720 578
Member News
Congratulations and Welcome to the
·
Harry L
Greenberg, MD – Dermatology,
·
Timothy T
Hamilton, MD - Cardiovascular Surgery,
1090 E Desert Inn Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89109
·
Jinsoo A Keyoung, MD – Radiology, 2020 Palomino Ln, Las Vegas, NV 89106
·
Brian A Lemper, DO – Anesthesiology, 9811 W Charleston Blvd #2-389,
·
Edmond Pack,
MD - OB-Gyn, 3201 S Maryland
Pkwy #300, Las Vegas, NV 89109
Congratulations and Welcome to the
All from
·
Jan E Badertscher
·
Marianne Hazelitt
·
Rebecca M Hu
·
Kirsten A Knipprath
·
Martin Korb
·
Paul J Lanier
·
Janie F Liu
·
Mary M Martin
·
Ashwini P Mehta
·
Nathan S
Nielsen
·
Salman A Raheem
·
Sonia Samandari-rad
·
Matthew J Selleck
·
Mark J Stevens
·
Brandon Tong
·
Hendry T Tran
·
Javad C Vaziri
·
Lance R Wehrle
Congratulations to reinstated member
·
Joan S Leaks,
MD - Urgent Care
We regret to announce the passing of two long time
CCMS Members:
·
Gerald W
Jones, MD - Family Practice
·
Peter Mattimoe, MD - Family Practice
Applicants to Go Before Credentialing Committee
· John S
Anderson, MD - Radiology
· Constantine
George, MD - Internal Medicine
· John R Gosche, MD - Internal
Medicine
· Yvonne L
Saunders, MD - Family Practice
· Matthew W
Schwartz, MD - Radiation Oncology
· Scott G
Shipley, MD - Otolaryngology
If you have any pertinent information about these
membership candidates, please contact:
For
information on becoming a member of the
Alliance
By Wendy Agrawal & Estela Hansen, 2007-08 CCMS
The Clark County Medical
Society Alliance is once again starting its annual Greeting Card Project to
help stop the nursing shortage.
Every year many physicians and
corporations send monetary donations to us and we send a greeting card to all
the physicians in
Please contact Lisa Gollard with any questions at 702 870-1717.
The following are the
contribution levels:
$50- You and Your Spouse's Name
$250- Silver Level Corporation Name
$500- Gold Level Corporation Name
Thank you,
Estela Hansen
Wendy Agrawal
CME CALENDAR
AHEC 318-8452
x 258
Online - "Domestic Violence and Medical Ethics."
Bechtel
NV Chapter AACE 434-8400
Pri-Med Institute (877)
4PRI-MED
Sierra Health
Services 242-7735
Oct 11 - “How to Document and
Southwest Medical
Associates 242-7735
Oct 11 - “How to document and inform a patient/family of unexpected outcomes”
Oct 5 - “Neurovascular Case Conference” 1.5 CME Credits
Oct 19 - “Optimizing GI Functions” 1.5 CME Credits
Oct 20 - “The Ethical Use of Medical Restraints” 1 Medical Ethics Credit
Oct 20 - “Disclosing Errors and Edverse Events” 1.5 Medical Ethics Credit
UMC 383-2604
Oct 5 - “Lysosomal Storage Diseases in Pediatric Medicine”
Oct 12 - “Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency”
Oct 19 - “Women’s Health - Menopause”
Education Opportunities for Practice Managers 697-5471 ext 134
Call the NV Medical Group Management Association
Only CME Activities held at the Clark County Medical Society office are specifically endorsed by CCMS.
The following referrals were provided to CCMS members in the third quarter of 2007 (through September 18)
Specialty Referrals
Addiction Medicine 0
Allergy 0
Anesthesiology 1
Cardiology 7
Cardiovascular Surgery 0
Dermatology 3
Diagnostic Radiology 0
Endocrinology 1
Family Practice 12
Gastroenterology 2
General Surgery 4
Geriatrics 0
Gynecologic Oncology 10
Hematology 1
Infectious Medicine 0
Internal Medicine 20
Nephrology 0
Neurology 5
Neurosurgery 3
Ob-Gyn 11
Occupational Med 0
Oncology 0
Ophthalmology 2
Oral/Maxillofacial Surg. 0
Orthopaedic Surgery 14
Otolaryngology 2
Pain Mgmt/Medicine 11
Pathology 0
Pediatrics 6
Ped. Surgery 0
Physical Med/Rehab 0
Plastic Surgery 5
Psychiatry 3
Pulmonology 1
Radiology 1
Rheumatology 0
Thoracic Surgery 0
Toxicology 0
Urology 0
Vascular Surgery 1
Website Referrals 30
Totals 154
Southern Nevada Health District Report
Health care providers can play a significant role in
reducing tobacco use
By
Southern Nevada Health
District
Educating
our community on the harmful effects of tobacco use has long been a priority
for the Southern Nevada Health District and our public health and health care
partners. To date our efforts have been validated by the declining smoking
rates of our population and the increasing public support of more stringent
smoking policies in our community. Despite these successes, as well as the
enormous health risks of smoking and the benefits of quitting, 22 percent of
adults in
Additionally,
tobacco use is responsible for approximately 440,000 deaths annually in the
As
medical professionals you know these statistics all too well, and you know the
health benefits of quitting smoking are substantial and include decreases in
the risk of heart attack, stroke, lung and other cancers, and chronic lung
disease. Unfortunately, only about half of smokers seen by a
physician report receiving advice or counseling to quit, and even
fewer – 2 percent to 15percent – are offered any form of assistance, including
specific counseling on how to stop, referrals to treatment programs, or
prescriptions for smoking cessation medications.
Physicians and other health professionals are in a
unique position to identify tobacco users and to provide effective
intervention. There is strong evidence from many clinical trials that brief
smoking cessation counseling delivered by physicians, dentists, and other
clinicians increases smoking cessation rates among their adult patients.
As a health care provider, you have an opportunity
to make a significant contribution to reducing tobacco use among southern
The health district recommends health care providers routinely and consistently
deliver a brief 3-step intervention consisting of “the 3 A’s:”
·
Ask
about tobacco use at every visit;
·
Advise
all tobacco users to stop; and
·
Assist
the patient by offering medications to aid in quitting
and/or referrals to community programs such as the Nevada Tobacco Users
Helpline at 1-800 QUIT NOW.
The brief intervention approach for clinicians was
developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to address
tobacco use with patients regularly and efficiently. The intervention should be
repeated at every visit with a patient and can easily be integrated into the
current interaction between provider and patient.
Our
local Brief Intervention Project is a collaborative effort of the health
district and the Nevada Tobacco User’s Helpline. As part of the local program
the health district has developed various education materials for professionals
and their patients that are available to you free of charge. I encourage you
and your staff to request these materials by accessing our order form at the
health district’s
Because smokers frequently state that a health care provider’s advice is
a strong motivator for making a quit attempt and remaining abstinent, the
impact a health professional can have on a patient's smoking habit cannot be
overstated. You can make a considerable contribution to our efforts to reduce
the use of tobacco in
The Immigration Debate
By Larry
Matheis
NSMA
Executive Director
Every immigration wave has created significant numbers
of new Americans and every wave has challenged fundamentally the core aspects
of our system - primarily the education, the political and the health care
systems. The wave of the 1840’s
brought 1.5 million new residents and the 1850’s brought 3 million. Of these 4.5 million new Americans, 1.5
million were Germans and 2 million were Irish.
The Germans had a disproportionate number of professionals and scholars
who were political refugees for the most part.
They adjusted to and became leaders of the American system. They often pooled their money and bought
cheap land in the Midwest and built new cities throughout the middle west and
The
tone of the debate about the Irish immigrants, which often focused on criminal
behavior or health care and education costs to the broader society, reads quite
a bit like that we hear today particularly about Latino immigrants. While the issue of speaking English was made
about Germans, it passed rather quickly.
The religious and language issues joined the other issues raised about
Irish immigrants with the next major immigration following the Civil War. 15 million new Americans came between 1860-1900 and another 18 million between
1900-1930. Overwhelmingly, these folks
came from middle Europe or the
The
development of free clinics, charity hospitals and mass screenings for disease
were all parts of the health care system's response to these immigration
waves. To understand the health care
needs of
Currently,
according to the Bureau of Census, 62% of Nevadans are categorized as
"White", 6.9% as "Black", 1.3% as "Native
American", 6.3% as "Asian or Pacific Islander" and 23.3% as
"Hispanic Origin". Nearly 27%
of our population is 18 years of age or younger and 11.2% is 65 years of age or
older, but most of the current and future growth in the total population are
children or seniors. Indeed, the
population of children and teens is expected to grow 40% in the next decade and
the senior population will grow by nearly 56%.
I'll leave the implications of these child and adolescent numbers for
the education system to others, but it should also be obvious that these
population groups use health care resources in greater numbers than most of the
rest of the population. More important
for planning
The
19-64 year olds who account for about 62% of current Nevadans is also expected
to grow by about 39% in the next decade.
Today, 23.3% of our fellow Nevadans between the ages of 19-64 are
Hispanics. By 2016, it's expected that
an additional half million of this age group will be Hispanic. Among the challenges about assessing the
health needs of the
When
assessing population impact on health care the demographic data are not the
most important ones to analyze. Nevadans
are less healthy and more prone to behaviors that add to risks that they'll
need medical services than are folks in most of the rest of the nation. Every Nevadan is aware that we have awful
numbers regarding health behaviors (smoking, drinking, drug abuse, etc...) and
have the illness and death data that would be expected. Lung and heat diseases at rates far above the
national average relate to smoking rates.
Preventable highway accidents with high use of trauma services, death
from alcohol related liver disease and nation leading suicide rates relate to
high alcohol consumption levels, including binge and heavy drinking rates. Nation leading death rates for infections and
poisonings are associated with drug abuse.
Nevadans engage in risky behavior at high rates and make heavy demands
on our health care system as a result.
Other
"behaviors" also challenge our health care system. Only 67.3% of pregnant
That
brings us to the last driver challenging the
Every
Nevadan is going to find navigating the health care system a challenge. Every uninsured Nevadan is going to face even
great challenges. Our large immigrant
population faces the additional challenges associated with cultural, language
and (depending on their legal status) fears of government action against them
and their families. Last year, Congress
closed most Medicaid services to illegal immigrants but the State Children's
health Insurance Program (Nevada CheckUp) accepts all qualified uninsured
children (30,000 Nevada children are on that program now) regardless of legal
status. There are however, 106,000
uninsured children in
I serve
currently as the CoChair of the Nevada Covering Kids
and Families Coalition, which seeks to reach out and enroll every child who
should be covered by the Nevada CheckUp program. It also provides outreach and education to
get every eligible Nevadan on the State-Federal Medicaid program. These efforts seek to improve the health of
these Nevadans and to reduce the number of uninsured working Nevadans. All of these efforts may go for naught however
as Congress faces a difficult challenge.
The national SCHIP program (Nevada CheckUp) must be reauthorized this
year or it goes away. The proposed
reauthorization could bring
The Nevada
Classifieds
Physician Needed: The
University of Nevada School of Medicine in
For Lease:
For lease: Freestanding
building with 37 parking spaces, close to UMC, downtown & freeways. Previously used by HealthSouth for outpatient
rehab services, large floor plan, ready for fast move in. Can also be built inside to
suit tenant. Call Richard Krieger
at 702-271-2756 or 565-3436.
for
Medical Space Set UP for Outpatient surgery, rehab therapy, 2880 sq ft minimal improvements
needed. $1.50 sq ft modified gross lease. 702-869-2956 or 521-4157.
For
Travel today has extended beyond North America and
For Sublease: Brand new space. Any specialty welcome, including PCPs. Work alongside family
physician with full panel of patients and other subspecialists.
Friendly people. Great price.
Great Location. Call Yvonne Saunders, MD 256-4646.
office space for lease:
Physician Reviewers Needed: HealthInsight Quality Improvement
Organization needs physician reviewers for medical cases, especially in the
specialties of Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Cardiovascular surgery, Internal
Medicine & Family Medicine. If
interested call Dr. Robert Shreck at 933-7313 or Ellen DePrat
at 385-9933.
VIP Mini-suite: Crystal
chandelier, original oil paintings, ancient fossils, cherry wood doors,
amethyst crystal water fountain, Feng Shui custom design. Share with VIP Family Practitioner, Plastic Surgery, Podiatry,
Med-Spa, Dietary, Audiology, etc. Ideal for
sub-specialist to expand to Green Valley/Anthem. Call 938-0190.
rental incentive:
seeking a retired/semi-retired MD wanting to earn good pay with a part-time, flexible
schedule. Needs current
County Line
21st Century Oncology……990-4767. …… www.21stcenturyoncology.com
Comprehensive Cancer Centers of NV ……952-3400
Consultants in Marketing …994-2464
Ensemble Real Estate Services ….562-7595
Ferguson Advertising, Inc … 260-426-4401
Medical Group Management Association ….. 697-5471 ext. 134
Medical Protective …. 260-426-4401
Medicus……..512-467-2800 ……. www.medicusinsurance.com
MxSecure, Inc …..888-580-1010 …. www.mxsecure.com
NAS Recruitment Coummunications…..972-392-9992
Nevada Docs Support Association, Inc ….. 702-215-4894… www.nvdocs.com
Nevada Mutual Insurance Company ….. 798-6001 ….. www.nevadamutual.com
Premier Physicians Insurance Company…..860-6130 ... www.ppicmedmal.com
The Firm……. 739-9933
United Blood Services ………….702-228-4483 ext 235 … www.unitedbloodsystems.org