Synergy - March/April 2014 - 24

namss focus

NAMSS Provides Comments on
Two Industry Initiatives
By Molly Giammarco, NAMSS Government Relations Manager

I

n the past few months, NAMSS has
provided formal feedback to two important
industry initiatives: the American Board
of Medical Specialties' (ABMS) proposed
Maintenance of Certification (MOC) Program
Standards and the National Practitioner Data
Bank's (NPDB) revised Guidebook draft. In
both cases, volunteer task forces worked
closely with NAMSS' Government Relations
team to provide formal comment that
reflects the interests of NAMSS' members.
ABMS has spent the past two years
developing standards to provide structured
guidance to its 24 Member Boards regarding
MOC as well as the flexibility to tailor them
to their specific disciplines. Last September,
ABMS invited industry partners, organizations,
and the general public to review and
comment on these proposed standards.
MOC is an important component of
credentialing that MSPs know well. NAMSS'
comments reflect this expertise and
provide ABMS with unique and helpful
feedback on the standards' functionality and
user-friendliness.
The task force's recommendations included
implementing more uniform and objective
competency measures for each Member
Board, explicitly defining the MOC
participation policy and board-certification
status, and making the recertification
examination optional. NAMSS submitted
comments in November, and ABMS is
expected to release its final MOC standards
in early 2014.
In late November, the Health Resources
and Services Administration (HRSA), which
administers the NPDB, issued a request
for public comment on its revisions to the
NPDB Guidebook. These revisions address
legislative and regulatory changes that the
NPDB adopted since its last update in
2001, including the NPDB and Healthcare
Integrity and Protection Data Bank merger.
A NAMSS task force consisting of MSPs
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SYNERGY MARCH/APRIL 2014

and two attorneys combed through the
200-page revision and pointed out concerns
and provided recommendations to make
the Guidebook clearer and, ultimately, the
NPDB more effective.
One of the task force's main concerns was
how the Guidebook interprets Focused
Professional Performance Evaluation
(FPPE) to be an investigation, and thus,
reportable to the NPDB. As MSPs know,
healthcare entities' bylaws nuance
investigation protocol. The point at which
an investigation begins varies too much
for the Guidebook to assume that FPPE is
always a part of an investigation. FPPE can
be just as much a part of the healthcare
entity's evaluation process, which does not
equate to an investigation. The Guidebook's
overarching requirement overlooks the
intricacy of bylaws, thereby prompting more
confusion-and even less compliance-
among hospitals and facilities.

NAMSS submitted its comments to HRSA in
late January and will keep you updated on
the Guidebook's forthcoming developments.
Stay tuned.
As always, NAMSS appreciates the hard
work of its volunteer task forces and the
helpful feedback that you provide on
these initiatives. It is your expertise and
dedication that makes NAMSS thrive as an
organization and as a respected partner
throughout the healthcare industry.
Both sets of comments are available on
NAMSS' website under Advocacy. ■

Molly Giammarco is NAMSS'
Government Relations Manager.
You may reach her at
mgiammarco@namss.org.
http://www.namss.org/advocacy
Synergy - March/April 2014

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