Author: adminwisconsin

MEB approves opioid prescribing guidelines

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The Wisconsin Medical Examining Board (MEB) approved best practice guidelines for opioid prescribing at its monthly meeting in Madison in July. This action is a result of Wisconsin State Assembly Rep. John Nygren’s HOPE legislative package; 2015 Act 269 granted the MEB authority to post the guidelines, which are inspired by those already in place from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state’s Worker’s Compensation program.

While the guidelines are not mandatory practice parameters, they are expected to assist physicians with making more informed decisions about their prescribing practices. Click here to view the guidelines.

  • The MEB also moved closer to finalizing new continuing medical education (CME) rules that will eventually require physicians to include coursework on the new guidelines as part of their 30 hours per biennium requirement. The likely outcome of this CME-related rule will be:
  • All physicians who have a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) number will be required to take two credits of CME in prescribing-related areas as part of their biennial 30-credit total.
  • This requirement will take effect for the next two complete CME reporting cycles (essentially for 2017-2019 and then again for 2019-2021).
  • The first time a physician satisfies that two-credit requirement, the CME will need to include information on the new opioid prescribing guidelines. (It is likely the Wisconsin Medical Society’s opioid prescribing webinar series, which is now available on-demand, will be grandfathered in as satisfying the guidelines-related subject matter requirement.)
  • The second time the physician satisfies the two-credit requirement, it can be in the arena of “responsible controlled substances prescribing.”
  • This requirement COULD end after two CME cycles—it will depend on the status of the opioid crisis and whether or not the MEB continues the requirement for future cycles.

The MEB is expected to finalize these requirements at its meeting later this month.

WHIO Names Dana Richardson CEO

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Wisconsin Health Information Organization
The Wisconsin Health Information Organization (WHIO) has named Dana Richardson its new CEO. Richardson succeeds Josephine Musser who is retiring.

Richardson has been serving since April as Acting Executive Director of the non-profit PCPI® Foundation in Chicago. Previously, she served six years at the American Medical Association (AMA) as Director of Operations and Strategic Initiatives for the PCPI, which was originally convened by the AMA. From 2002-2010, Richardson was Vice President for Quality Initiatives at the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA).

With a BS in Nursing and an MA Business, Health Service Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and prior experience at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison and the Dean Health System, Richardson has deep ties to Wisconsin’s health care system, as both a provider and administrator, beginning in 1983.

“Dana Richardson is a proven leader who thinks strategically and acts decisively, setting goals, solving problems and seeing tangible results,” said WHIO Board Chair Linda Syth. “Her background in quality and efficiency at the local and state level in Wisconsin, along with her work at the national level with physician societies and performance measurement, make her uniquely qualified to engage caregivers where their heart is – great patient care. We’re delighted to welcome Dana to WHIO,” Syth said.

WHIO provides health care information to consumers, clinicians, providers, employers and payers to support decision-making. “I am excited to be joining an organization focused on the quality, safety and affordability of health care. Knowing that Wisconsin is a high value state for health care services, my goal is to further leverage the WHIO information to set a higher bar,” said Richardson.

Richardson will assume her new post on August 30th and collaborate with outgoing CEO Jo Musser until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition.

The Wisconsin Health Information Organization (WHIO) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to improving the quality, affordability, safety and efficiency of health care in Wisconsin.

Walker appoints Seemeyer to lead DHS

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Wisconsin Health News
Gov. Scott Walker on Thursday appointed Linda Seemeyer to serve as secretary of the Department of Health Services. Seemeyer served as director of the Walworth County Department of Health and Human Services from 2007 to 2015. She was also director of the Milwaukee County Department of Administrative Services and deputy secretary of the Department of Administration under Gov. Tommy Thompson.

Seemeyer starts Aug. 22. She succeeds Kitty Rhoades who passed away in June. Interim Secretary Tom Engels will resume his duties as deputy secretary.

Register now for Sept. 6 Newsmaker event with Mayor Barrett on the state of health of Milwaukee

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Eighty years ago, Milwaukee was the healthiest city in the country. Now, it’s among the unhealthiest in the state. What happened?

Join Mayor Tom Barrett and Commissioner of Health Bevan Baker on Sept. 6 for a wide-ranging discussion on the state of health of Wisconsin’s largest city, and how it impacts the rest of the state. They’ll outline what city officials and other leaders are doing to decrease disparities and reduce infant mortality rates, and examine why these rates, and others, including obesity, are higher in Milwaukee.

Wisconsin Health News Editor Tim Stumm will moderate this Newsmaker Event on Sept. 6 in Milwaukee at the Milwaukee Athletic Club.

Register now.

State in Process of Drafting the Health Improvement Plan

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Greetings!  We wanted to provide you with a quick update on the status of the Wisconsin Health Improvement Planning Process. Staff at the Department of Health Services have been working hard to pull together draft ideas around the selected health priorities. Learn more about the priorities and the selection process on our website.

As we heard from you during the State Health Assessment review process, we know your communities are doing many great things and we hope you can share what you have learned and successful approaches with others. We’ll be seeking your input soon!

Thank you for your interest and partnership in this important work!

-The WI-HIPP Team

DHS: Medicaid projected to end biennium below budget

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July 6, Wisconsin Health News

Declining Medicaid enrollment has led the Department of Health Services to predict the state will end the 2015-’17 biennium below budget for the program, according to a report released last week.
The projection suggests that general purpose revenue expenditures will be 3 percent below budgeted levels for the biennium. That’s in part due to a decline in Medicaid enrollment, which dropped by more than 6,000 between March and May.

Other factors playing a role in the projection include slower growth in prescription drug expenditures, higher drug rebate revenues and less growth in personal care and home health services.

“These positive trends in enrollment and service utilization indicate good things about ongoing improvements in the state’s economy and the department’s efforts to control Medicaid costs through better coordination, improved managed care rate setting methodologies, and fraud and abuse prevention efforts,” Tom Engels, interim DHS secretary, wrote in a letter to lawmakers on the Joint Finance Committee.

Engels stressed that the margin could be “easily reversed” if enrollment, provider claims or other factors turn out “slightly less favorable than assumed.”

Read more.

WHN to Hold Conference on the “Future of Healthcare”

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Wisconsin Health News is hosting a daylong conference on July 28th focusing on the future of healthcare.

National and state health leaders will analyze the trends, policies and innovations shaping the state’s changing healthcare landscape. Panelists will discuss the growing prevalence of partnerships, the intersection of healthcare and community population health, the impact of data and more.
For additional conference information, click here.