Surgery News - November 2008 - (Page 4)

NEWS SURGERY NEWS • N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 8 ACS Hopes to Expand Screening SBI Funds from page 1 bursed by Medicaid and Medicare, but indicated that the codes are vastly underused. Screening for alcohol intoxication is required at level I and II trauma centers; patients with positive screens should be offered interventions, according to criteria adopted by the American College of Surgeons’ Committee on Trauma (COT). The committee decided to institute SBI because alcohol use is the single most important risk factor associated with serious injury, said Dr. John Fildes, who represented the ACS committee at the meeting. Screening and brief intervention protocols are also incorporated into the latest edition of the Advanced Trauma Life Support manual, which was released in October, said Dr. Fildes, an ACS Fellow and professor of surgery at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The COT hopes to expand SBI to all level II and III trauma centers and have drug and alcohol intoxication data included in the National Trauma Data Bank, Dr. Fildes said. The ONDCP has been seeking ways to encourage more physicians to conduct SBIs. At the meeting, Dr. Madras cited recently released figures from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration showing that 19.9 million people abuse drugs in the United States, but that 93% of those who are addicted are not aware that they have a problem and do not seek treatment. Dr. Madras said that so far, about 700,000 people have been screened. Almost a quarter were positive for alcohol or drug use; 70% needed a brief intervention and about 16% were referred to treatment, she said. According to self-reports 6 months later, at least a third of those who received treatment said their health status improved. At the beginning of 2008, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan, which covers 8 million employees and dependents, notified its carriers that the CPT codes for screening and intervention were added and available for use. In June, the Department of Veterans Affairs directed all VA medical centers to routinely screen for alcohol use and provide brief interventions. Online training is available through a curriculum sponsored by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and Boston University at www.mdalcoholtraining.org. ■ 2008 Premiums Up 5% For Health Insurance B Y M A RY E L L E N S C H N E I D E R Else vier Global Medical Ne ws T Coding for SBI Reimbursement Payer Code Description Fee Schedule Commercial CPT 99408 Alcohol and/or substance abuse structured screening $33.41 insurance and brief intervention services; 15-30 minutes CPT 99409 Alcohol and/or substance abuse structured screening $65.51 and brief intervention services; > 30 minutes Medicare G0396 Alcohol and/or substance abuse structured screening $29.42 and brief intervention services; 15-30 minutes G0397 Alcohol and/or substance abuse structured screening $57.69 and brief intervention services; > 30 minutes Medicaid H0049 Alcohol and/or drug screening $24.00 H0050 Alcohol and/or drug service, brief intervention, $48.00 per 15 minutes Source: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration he average employer-sponsored health insurance premium rose 5% from 2007 to 2008, with average premiums for family coverage reaching $12,680, according to a report from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust. While experts said the 1-year average increase in premiums was modest, they noted that over the last 9 years the rise in premiums has outpaced growth in both wages and inflation. Since 1999, family premiums have risen from $5,791 to $12,680, while individual premiums have gone from $2,196 to $4,704, according to the report. The findings are based on an annual survey of 2,832 randomly selected public and private companies with three or more employees. Of those companies, 1,927 responded to the full survey, while the remaining companies responded to a single question about whether they offered health coverage to their employees. The survey was conducted between January and May of this year. The full study is available online at www.kff.org. In addition, an analysis of the study was published online in the journal Health Affairs (doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.6.w492). While American workers are paying more for their health insurance, they may be getting less in terms of coverage, Drew Altman, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Kaiser Family Foundation, said during a press conference to release the survey results. “We’re seeing a change in this survey in the comprehensiveness of the coverage workers get, especially in small firms,” he said. The survey showed that more workers are enrolled in plans with higher deductibles. In 2008, 18% of all covered workers had health plan deductibles of at least $1,000 for single coverage, compared with 12% in 2007 and 10% in 2006. And high deductibles were more common among employees at small companies. In 2008, 35% of workers in companies with less than 200 employees have deductibles of $1,000 a year for single coverage. This number represents an increase over the 21% of workers in 2007 and 16% in 2006 with similar deductibles. American workers can expect to see more cost sharing in 2009, according to the survey results. The survey found that among employers who currently offer health benefits, 40% reported that they would be somewhat or very likely to increase the amount that employees pay for health coverage next year. Similarly, 41% reported that they would be somewhat or very likely to increase deductibles and 45% said they would be somewhat or very likely to increase office visit copayments or coinsurance amounts for employees. ■ SURGERY NEWS SURGERY NEWS Editor in Chief, SURGERY NEWS Lazar J. Greenfield, M.D., FACS ACS Director of Communications Linn Meyer ELSEVIER GLOBAL MEDICAL NEWS EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Anesthesiology: Robert Morell, M.D., Clinical Associate Professor of Anesthesia, Fort Walton Beach Medical Center Bariatric: Myriam J. Curet, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, Stanford University Cardiothoracic: Mark S. Allen, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, Mayo Clinic Cardiothoracic: Fred A. Crawford, Jr., M.D., FACS, Chief, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina Colorectal: Robert Madoff, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, University of Minnesota Endocrine Surgery: Robert Udelsman M.D., FACS, Chairman, Department of Surgery, Yale University Ethics: James W. Jones, M.D., Ph.D., FACS, Visiting Professor of Medicine and Medical Ethics, Baylor University Information Technology: Patricia L. Turner, M.D., FACS, Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Maryland Minimally Invasive and Gastrointestinal: Gerald M. Fried, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, McGill University Neurological: Hunt Batjer, M.D., FACS, Michael J. Marchese Professor, Northwestern University Obstetrics and Gynecology: William J. Hoskins, M.D., FACS, Executive Director of Surgical Activities, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Ophthalmology: Natalie C. Kerr, M.D., FACS, Chief, Pediatric Ophthalmology Service, University of Tennessee Orthopedic: Mark R. Belsky, M.D., FACS, Chief of Orthopedic Surgery, Newton-Wellesley Hospital Otolaryngology: Mark Weissler, M.D., FACS, J.P. Riddle Distinguished Professor, University of North Carolina Pediatric Surgery: Thomas F. Tracy, Jr., M.D., FACS, Pediatric Surgeon-in-Chief, Hasbro Children's Hospital Plastic Surgery: Linda Phillips, M.D., FACS, Truman G. Blocker Jr., M.D. Distinguished Professor, University of Texas Resident/Associate Society: Ted A. James, M.D., Assistant Professor of Surgery, University of Vermont Surgical Oncology: James P. Neifeld, M.D., FACS, Chairman, Department of Surgery, Virginia Commonwealth University Transplantation: Jeffrey Punch, M.D., FACS, Associate Professor of Surgery, University of Michigan Trauma (Burns and Mass Casualties): Steven E. Wolf, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, University of Texas Trauma and Critical Care: Grace S. Rozycki, M.D., FACS, Professor of Surgery, Emory University Urology: Badrinath R. Konety, M.D., FACS, Vice Chair, Dept. of Urology, University of California at San Francisco Vascular: Linda Harris, M.D., FACS, Associate Professor of Surgery, Millard Fillmore Hospital SURGERY NEWS is the official newspaper of the American College of Surgeons and provides the practicing surgeon with timely and relevant news and commentary about clinical developments and about the impact of health care policy on the profession and on surgical practice today. Content for SURGERY NEWS is provided by International Medical News Group and Elsevier Global Medical News. Content for the NEWS FROM THE COLLEGE is provided by the American College of Surgeons. The ideas and opinions expressed in SURGERY NEWS do not necessarily reflect those of the College or the Publisher. The American College of Surgeons and Elsevier Inc., will not assume responsibility for damages, loss, or claims of any kind arising from or related to the information contained in this publication, including any claims related to the products, drugs, or services mentioned herein. POSTMASTER: Send changes of address (with old mailing label) to Circulation, SURGERY NEWS, 60 B Columbia Rd., 2nd flr., Morristown, NJ 07960. The American College of Surgeons’ headquarters is located at 633 N. Saint Clair St., Chicago, IL 60611-3211. SURGERY NEWS (ISSN 1553-6785) is published monthly for the American College of Surgeons by Elsevier Inc., 60 B Columbia Rd., 2nd flr., Morristown, NJ 07960; 973-290-8200; fax 973-290-8250. ELSEVIER SOCIETY NEWS GROUP, A DIVISION OF INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL NEWS GROUP President, IMNG Alan J. Imhoff Director, ESNG Mark Branca Executive Director, Editorial Mary Jo M. Dales Executive Editor, IMNG Denise Fulton Executive Editor, EGMN Kathy Scarbeck Publication Editor Elizabeth Wood Publication Associate Editor Jay C. Cherniak VP, Medical Education Sylvia H. Reitman Sen http://www.mdalcoholtraining.org http://www.kff.org

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Surgery News - November 2008 Contents News:�Without a Stitch The 20/20 Vision:�Med School Mix News From the College:�New President General Surgery: Diabetes Debate

Surgery News - November 2008

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