April 2021
Beginning April 5, the “Open Charts Law” (Interoperability, Information Blocking, and the ONC Health IT Certification Program of the 21st Century Cures Act) requires giving patients access without charge to their EMR health information, such as by web portal (except psychotherapy notes or information for legal or administrative processes). AAFP is requesting a delay to help reduce administrative burdens, advance interoperability, and improve patients’ access to their data.
CAFP’s Virtual All Member Advocacy Meeting (AMAM) will be May 15-16. Click here for free Registration. Day one will focus on resolutions, policy, officer elections, and officer installation. Day two will have advocacy, legislative training, and education on policy issues, followed by a week of virtual visits arranged by CAFP with your legislators.
All Californians from age 16 will soon be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines. If you are interested in administering COVID-19 vaccines in your practice, please click here to provide your survey input to CAFP to improve advocacy.
New COVID infections are increasingly by mutations that spread more easily. Fortunately, the 3 currently-available vaccines seem to provide fairly good efficacy against them. Unfortunately, the COVID death rate is about 1.5-2.0%, and prolonged-illness rates of survivors are many times that, including lung damage, anxiety/depression, etc, even among some patients not hospitalized. We need to stay up-to-date on recommendations to help keep our patients & staff safe as we cautiously open up.
The prescribers’ charge to maintain the Controlled Substances Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) will increase from $12 to $22 for licenses expiring on or after July 1, 2021 (and will then decrease to $18 on or after July 1, 2023).
Beginning January 1, 2022, all prescriptions in California must be e-prescriptions, unless temporarily unavailable due to technological or electrical failure, or if dispensed by a pharmacy outside California. (The Medical Board of California recommends having paper prescription forms available as backup.)
