What: Free CME leadership training with top experts
When: Saturday, Nov. 17, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Where: Colorado Medical Society, Denver, CO
Topic: Translating Ideas into Political Action - How to Get Your Points Across to Policymakers
Speaker: Joe Gagen, JD

CME: Up to 6.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits

Register now for a day-long, highly interactive program that will give you the tune-up you need to get your point across when talking with Colorado's policymakers. Physicians' voices must be heard by the legislature about the opioid crisis, the sky-rocketing cost of care, the medical practice act, peer review and other issues vital to the practice of medicine and to the health of Coloradans.

In this entertaining presentation, Joe Gagen, a national speaker on legislative and public policy advocacy, will demonstrate how to effectively communicate your message to our legislators and other public policy makers. Not only will he provide insight on how to frame your position on critical regulatory and legislative issues, but he will also provide specific do's and don'ts for legislative meetings, public hearings and written communications.

Every participant will practice their own message in a mock conversation with a legislator about the real issues at stake in the 2019 Colorado legislature. Get feedback on your message delivery so you are ready for the real thing this legislative season.

Learn more and view the agenda and accreditation statement here.

Just in time for flu and pneumonia season, a one-minute educational video from Telligen shows your patients and families what they could be missing if they don't vaccinate. Download this video and brochure in English or Spanish for use in patient waiting rooms and other clinical settings.

The American Medical Association (AMA) has created a new resource to help physicians extend care beyond the exam room with technologies that are fundamentally changing the way patients interact with health care. The Digital Health Implementation Playbook offers a guide to the most efficient path for applying digital health solutions including key steps, best practices, and resources to accelerate and achieve digital health adoption. Learn more and download the playbook here.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reports that registrants are receiving telephone calls and emails by criminals identifying themselves as DEA employees or other law enforcement personnel. This issue first came to light last spring but is again on the rise. 

The criminals have masked their telephone number on caller ID by showing the DEA Registration Support 800 number. Please be aware that a DEA employee would not contact a registrant and demand money or threaten to suspend a registrant's DEA registration.

If you are contacted by a person purporting to work for DEA and seeking money or threatening to suspend your DEA registration, submit the information through " Extortion Scam Online Reporting" posted on the DEA Diversion Control Division's website, www.DEADiversion.usdoj.gov.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently announced the Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) model, an important step in advancing the agency's multi-pronged strategy to combat the nation's opioid crisis. The model addresses the need to better align and coordinate care of pregnant and postpartum Medicaid beneficiaries with opioid use disorder (OUD) through state-driven transformation of the delivery system surrounding this vulnerable population. By supporting the coordination of clinical care and the integration of other services critical for health, wellbeing and recovery, the MOM model has the potential to improve quality of care and reduce expenditures for mothers and infants.

Learn more here.

Register today for "CIVHC Connect: Dollars and Sense" on Nov. 13, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. The day-long event features new data and analysis from local and national leaders in health care transparency and cost containment. "The economics of the American health care system stopped making sense a long time ago. This November, the conversation changes," CIVHC says.

Colorado Medical Society's own chief strategy officer, Chet Seward, will join an all-star afternoon panel on how we can work together to drive positive change. Other panelists include Kim Bimestefer, Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing; State Rep. Joann Ginal; William Lindsay III, CLU, CEBS, RPA; Janet Pogar, Anthem; Chris Tholen, MBA, Colorado Hospital Association; and State Sen. Jim Smallwood.

Find more information and register here.

The prevalence of type 2 diabetes has been rising over the past 20 years. Based upon statistics on current health trends from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it is estimated that 30 million adult Americans have diabetes, or approximately 10 percent of the adult population. Even more adults are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes; the CDC estimates that currently 84 million adult Americans have prediabetes.

The National Diabetes Prevention Program lifestyle change program is a structured, year-long program that has been proven to help patients delay or prevent type 2 diabetes. Over the past few years, the CDC, American Medical Association, and health care organizations across the nation have worked together to bring National DPP lifestyle change programs to patients.

The AMA encourages physicians to read this article on the three steps that can help you identify patients with prediabetes and refer them to a National Diabetes Prevention Program lifestyle change program, then take a survey. Thank you for your participation.