Alabama
Number of Licensed Physicians in Alabama on the Rise
Figures recently released by the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners and Medical Licensure Commission of Alabama show that the state experienced another increase in the number of newly licensed physicians in 2013, with 912 approved applicants by endorsement and 54 approved applicants by examination — 122 more approved applicants than in 2012.
The Board also licensed 63 physician assistants and 240 physician assistants registered to physicians.
The Board received 522 complainant inquiries during 2013, with 295 resolved without formal investigation. Formal investigations were opened in 166 cases, 85 letters of concern were issued, and 61 inquiries were pending. There were six summary license suspensions and one revocation during the year. Four licenses were voluntarily surrendered.
Source: Alabama BME/MLC Newsletter and Report, Issue 1, 2014
Iowa
Iowa Board of Medicine Releases Licensure and Disciplinary Statistics for 2013
A trend of growth in the number of physicians in Iowa continued in 2013, with the Iowa Board of Medicine issuing 863 new licenses, up from 815 in 2012. The figure, highlighted in the Board's 2013 Annual Report, represents a 6% increase in the number of licensed physicians in the state over 2012 and an 11% increase since 2011.
The report shows 6,829 physicians with active licenses in Iowa in 2013, up from 6,700 in 2012. There were 737 physicians in Iowa residency training programs in 2013, up from 691 in 2012. The state licensed 50 acupuncturists, up from 46 the previous year.
The increases are due to several factors, according to the report, including “more physicians establishing office practice in the state or employed by hospitals or clinics, more non-resident physicians working on temporary assignment in Iowa, or who are using telecommunications from non-Iowa locations to practice specialties such as radiology and pathology to diagnose patients in Iowa.”
ON THE DISCIPLINARY FRONT, THE BOARD REPORTED THAT IT RECEIVED 661 COMPLAINTS AND MANDATORY REPORTS IN 2013, DOWN FROM 792 IN 2012.
At the end of 2013, the Board was administering 11,578 active physician licenses, up 4% from 11,134. These numbers include physicians whose primary practice is in another state but are licensed to practice in Iowa.
On the disciplinary front, the Board reported that it received 661 complaints and mandatory reports in 2013, down from 792 in 2012. The Board charged 44 physicians, up from 32 in the previous year, and took 92 public disciplinary actions, down from 107. The Board issued 101 confidential letters of education or warning, up from 92 in 2012.
Fines were down substantially in 2013, with $74,500 in fines imposed on 16 physicians, as compared to $185,000 in fines imposed on 29 physicians in 2012.
Source: Iowa Board of Medicine news release, May 22, 2014
Iowa Launches New Effort Encouraging Physicians to Treat Patients' Pain Responsibly
The Iowa Board of Medicine has re-issued its 2009 policy statement on pain management to reinforce that Iowa physicians who responsibly diagnose and treat patients' pain should not be at risk of disciplinary action.
The statement, also endorsed by Iowa's boards of nursing, pharmacy and physician assistants, declares that patients “deserve to have their pain well managed, whether it's acute or chronic, mild or severe.”
According to the Board, recent publicity regarding Iowa physicians facing criminal charges or medical board actions for overprescribing controlled substances, particularly opioids for pain, may be causing a damping effect on patients' access to legitimate and necessary pain control services and medicines.
The Board said in a news release that it wanted to “assure Iowa physicians if they have a reasonable and responsible approach to such treatment they are unlikely to come under Board scrutiny.”
The Board said that a “reasonable and responsible approach” includes “performing adequate patient assessments, thorough documentation, ongoing patient monitoring of drug use, use of pain management agreements, regularly reviewing patient data in the Iowa Prescription Monitoring Database, and timely use of consults, for example mental health professionals, neurologists, pain management experts and physical therapists.”
THE BOARD SAID IN A NEWS RELEASE THAT IT WANTED TO ‘ASSURE IOWA PHYSICIANS IF THEY HAVE A REASONABLE AND RESPONSIBLE APPROACH TO SUCH TREATMENT THEY ARE UNLIKELY TO COME UNDER BOARD SCRUTINY.’
The Board is also encouraging Iowa physicians to complete mandatory continuing medical education activities on pain management by an Aug. 17, 2016 deadline. It released its “Joint Statement on Pain with the state's boards of nursing, pharmacy and physician assistants.
Source: Iowa Board of Medicine news release, June 10, 2014
North Carolina
North Carolina Board Adopts New Policy on the Use of Opioids to Treat Pain
The North Carolina Medical Board has adopted a sweeping new position statement on the use of opioid medications for the treatment of pain. The Board approved the position at its May 2014 meeting, with the statement becoming effective in June. The new statement provides detailed clinical guidelines and information about the Board's expectations for patient management.
‘THE UPDATED POLICY PRESENTED TAKES INTO CONSIDERATION RECENT EVIDENCE THAT RISK ASSOCIATED WITH OPIATES HAS SURGED, WHILE EVIDENCE FOR BENEFITS HAS REMAINED CONTROVERSIAL AND INSUFFICIENT,’ THE BOARD SAID IN ITS ANNOUNCEMENT.
According to an announcement of the new statement, issued recently by the Board, the publication of a “considerable body of research and experience” since the Board's last position statement on the use of opioid medications in 2004 made it necessary to update the statement.
“The updated policy presented takes into consideration recent evidence that risk associated with opiates has surged, while evidence for benefits has remained controversial and insufficient,” the Board said in its announcement. “Over the last decade opioid sales have increased in parallel with an increase in the morbidity and mortality associated with these drugs. At the same time approximately one in four patients seen in primary care settings suffers from pain that interferes with the activities of daily living.”
The challenges faced by North Carolina medical licensees who care for patients taking opioids for pain are significant, according to the Board. The majority of its updated policy applies to the treatment of chronic pain and the use of opioid analgesics, with guidance for assessing and managing acute pain in primary care provided as well.
The Board's updated policy contains several sections, including a preamble of information and a statement of the Board's goals; a conceptual overview discussing responsibility for appropriate pain management and opiate prescribing and prevention of opiate diversion and abuse; and guidelines for physicians that are linked to concepts presented in the first section.
To learn more, visit www.ncmedboard.org/notices.
Source: North Carolina Medical Board announcement, June 4, 2014
Oklahoma
Oklahoma Medical Board Streamlines Physician Licensure Process
The Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision (OBMLS) recently became the latest state to launch the FSMB's Uniform Application for Physician State Licensure (UA) to streamline the licensure process for physicians.
The Uniform Application makes it easier for physicians to become licensed in multiple states by providing a “core” application used by the 23 state medical boards using the UA. It eliminates the need for physicians to re-enter data multiple times and makes it easier for physicians to apply for licensure in multiple states.
The UA auto-populates key data, saving physicians time by eliminating the need to re-enter information multiple times. Information provided by physicians is stored in a permanent data repository, which is available to physicians when they apply for licensure in another of the growing number of states using the UA. The UA also auto-populates credentialing data for users of the Federation Credentials Verification Service (FCVS).
“This is a huge move forward in convenience for physicians,” said Lyle Kelsey, Executive Director of the OBMLS. “Many physicians practice in multiple states, and the old process could be very tedious and cumbersome. Now it's a much simpler, faster process.”
‘THIS IS A HUGE MOVE FORWARD IN CONVENIENCE FOR PHYSICIANS,’ SAID LYLE KELSEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE OBMLS.
In addition, Oklahoma is the first state to implement a web-service call between the FCVS application form and the existing OBMLS licensing database. The web-service allows the two systems to share information to provide a more seamless user experience.
In layman's terms, the OBMLS system sends FSMB a Unique ID that the user provides and FSMB sends back all the info the user had entered on FSMB's application form. Approximately 70 percent of applicant data for the UA can be pre-populated when the applicant uses FCVS. As UA usage continues to grow, the number of the more than 170,000 FCVS users accessing this added convenience is expected to increase as well.
OBMLS developed the application in collaboration with the FSMB and OK.gov, Oklahoma's official website managed by the eGovernment firm, NIC Inc. (Nasdaq: EGOV).
For more information about the UA, please visit www.fsmb.org/ua.html.
Source: FSMB/OSBMLS joint news release, June 4, 2014
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