Staff News Writer

The public is getting its first glimpse of physicians’ Medicare claims data following a widely publicized data release Wednesday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

What does the doctor of the future look like? Physician educators have some idea, but medical education doesn’t yet broadly reflect what 21st century physicians will need to learn. 

A coalition of stakeholders in the prescription drug supply chain, from manufacturers to pharmacies to physicians, Wednesday released comprehensive public health-focused policy recommendations to guide lawmakers’ efforts to curb misuse and abuse of such medicines across the nation. 

Physician educators made strides in redesigning medical education this week during a special consortium meeting at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where 11 AMA grant recipients discussed how they’re moving from planning stages to execution.

Physicians’ Medicare claims data—including billed charges and total payments—was released Wednesday to the public by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). It’s already generating considerable attention.

Contributors to the April issue of Virtual Mentor, the AMA’s online medical ethics journal, take a look at how regulations and other third-party activities affect the physician-patient relationship and delivery of care. 

Resident duty-hour restrictions have negative impacts on patient outcomes and performance on certification examinations, according to an analysis of duty-hour studies, which was published in the March issue of Annals of Surgery.

In the podcast (No. 5 in HIMSS’ ongoing HIE series), presenters explain that such technology can make a real difference for patient care, giving physicians access to patients’ health care information even when they receive that care outside of the physician’s organization.