Executive Director's Page
1923 - 2023
100 Year anniversary of the Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision.
I hope you will make plans to attend the 2023 Explore Conference at the Norman Hilton Embassy Suites on August 24 – 26 as part of the event that will be a recognition of the medical board’s 100th-year celebration.
Back to the news at hand:
We still seem to be working in a world of change, division, and confusion. Health care is no exception as the amount of legislation, regulation, and expectation are on the rise. Our lives continue to be influenced by the ongoing Covid (Variants) Pandemic, the perplexity of “medical self-help with misinformation, conspiracy theories, lack of researched information and downright return to the Traveling Medicine Man selling worthless elixirs with a NEW horse and buggy - the Internet. “You believe everything you read and see on the Internet… don’t you?” It is amazing the amount of stuff sold on the WebShopping Mall, everything from cleaning ear wax to avoiding those embarrassing odors from private parts we didn’t even discuss before in a non-mixed company! I’ve never had a greater sense of derelict obligation to be aware of things I didn’t know I was supposed to be aware. Shame on me for being in public with my age spots showing!
Well, what’s in this newsletter? I’m afraid it is more changes, but HOPEFULLY, explained in a way that helps you in your daily practice. I can’t promise it won’t increase your blood pressure.
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Our healthcare environment presents daily challenges that test your knowledge, ingenuity and ability to find innovative solutions. As in a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together to find the answer. EXPLORE provides a unique opportunity to network with your colleagues and stay ahead of the game--all while gleaning clinical and business knowledge from a wide array of nationally recognized speakers in keynote and breakout sessions. We are pleased to announce our partnership with the Oklahoma Academy of Family Physicians to host their 75th annual Scientific Assembly at EXPLORE with an additional day of education available on Saturday, August 26.
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In addition, we will recognize the 100th anniversary of the Oklahoma Medical Board at a celebratory lunch on Friday, August 25 featuring Humayun Chaudhry, DO, MACP, President and CEO of Federation of State Medical Boards.
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Our 2023 keynote speakers include: Shola Richards, CEO and Founder of Go Together Global; Steven Trzeciak, MD, MPH, Professor, Chair & Chief of Medicine, Cooper University Health Care and Cooper Medical School of Rowan University; Jonathan Fisher, MD, FAAC, Cardiologist, Mindfulness expert, Well-being and Resiliency leader; and Harris III, Master Illusionist and Communicator.
Come together. Solve the Riddles. Find solutions.
Due to this new format, registration may look a little different. Please click HERE for a full list of available offerings along with pricing. Our Medical Residents and Students may attend as our guests.
Target Audience
The educational design addresses the needs and issues of healthcare providers including physicians, nurses, physician assistants, healthcare administrators, risk managers, and practice managers.
Accreditation Statements
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the Oklahoma State Medical Association (OSMA) and PLICO. The OSMA is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The OSMA designates this live activity for a maximum of 21.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
The Osteopathic Founders Foundation is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association to provide osteopathic continuing medical education to physicians. The Osteopathic Founders Foundation designates the Keynotes and Clinical Update lectures for a maximum of thirteen (13) AOA Category 1-A credits and will report CME and specialty credits commensurate with the extent of the physician’s participation in this activity.
American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) accepts AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ from organizations accredited by the ACCME.
To officially receive AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ and a CME certificate of participation, the attendee must complete the online evaluations for each presentation attended as well as the overall conference evaluation.
Faculty Disclosure/CME Planning Committee/ Reviewer/and Moderator:
The Faculty, CME Planning Committee, Reviewer and Moderator have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. The OSMA CME Manager has mitigated all information with ineligible companies and has resolved all conflicts of interest if applicable.
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August 24, 2023 6:30-9:00PM
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Join the region’s premier healthcare leaders and problem solvers at the annual EXPLORE Healthcare Summit cocktail party, sponsored by the Oklahoma State Medical Association. You are invited to celebrate with us as we recognize the centennial anniversary of the Oklahoma Medical Board. Don’t miss the opportunity to network with your colleagues during this entertaining evening of uniquely crafted cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, engaging conversation and live music presented by DRIVE. For more information and to register, visit EXPLOREhealthcaresummit.com
Details: EXPLORE Conference After-Party Thursday, August 24 • 6:30 to 9:30 P.M.
Location: (click for map)
Oklahoma History Center*
800 Nazih Zuhdi Dr
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
*Explore attendees can take advantage of complimentary round-trip transportation from the Embassy Suites in Norman to the Oklahoma History Center. Transportation is provided by King’s Worldwide Transportation.
The EXPLORE Conference After-Party is sponsored by
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Looking Back at the Last Century |
Often, it’s difficult to see progress as it’s happening. As we celebrate 100 years of the Oklahoma Medical Board, it’s interesting to revisit where we have been.
In the year 1923:
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Oklahoma had been a state for 16 years. There were only 48 states.
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It was 5 years past World War I, "The War to End All Wars"
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Slightly more than 35% of American homes had electricity, almost exclusively in the larger cities.
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In Oklahoma in 1920, approximately 4% of the population had electricity. In the "dark land" (in the words of government publications), candles or lamps burning kerosene and coal oil provided light.
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The majority of Oklahomans had outdoor toilets and got their water from a hand-pumped well.
- The world was emerging from a global influenza pandemic that was responsible for an estimated 50 million deaths. There was no vaccine for influenza and no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections.
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Penicillin was still more than 5 years away
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Heroin, Cocaine, and Marijuana were available over the counter in most pharmacies.
- X-rays were still a young science and radiation therapy was in its infancy.
- The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded jointly to Frederick Grant Banting and John James Rickard Macleod for the discovery of insulin.
At the beginning of the 1920s, infant mortality and maternity death rates were disturbingly high. Many mothers delivered their babies at home, with no pre-natal or post-natal care and without any involvement from a physician or other medical professional. The Federal government began funding health care clinics and made educational materials available for pregnant women and mothers. As medically supervised deliveries became more common, the infant mortality and maternity death rates decreased. Much progress was also made in battling such widespread diseases as pellagra and hookworm, which mainly affected individuals residing in rural areas.
For the first 3 decades of the 20th century, medical treatments often consisted of mineral baths. Cities such as Hot Springs, AR and Medicine Park, OK were popular resorts. The area around Claremore, Oklahoma was known for its "Radium Water", which may or may not have contained Radium, but was high in Sulphur and other minerals. Spas and bath houses sprang up all over and since the treatments usually required several weeks, hotels, restaurants and other amenities came along with them. Many patients felt better afterwards, although that may have had something to do taking several weeks away from the stress and hard labor of their everyday lives, combined with physical therapy that often accompanied the baths. Eventually, the farming economy shifted and people could no longer use the off-season to take long spa treatments. Medical practice increasingly emphasized drugs and surgery.1
Nationwide, these diseases took a terrible toll2 in 1922:
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Condition
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# Deaths
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% of All US Deaths
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| Influenza and Pneumonia |
124,441 |
11.3% |
| Tuberculosis |
90,452 |
8.2% |
| Syphilis |
15,360 |
1.4% |
| Diptheria |
13,659 |
1.3% |
| Appendicitis and typhlitis |
13,229 |
1.2% |
| Bronchitis |
8,740 |
0.8% |
| Whooping Cough |
5,220 |
0.8% |
| Measles |
4,042 |
0.4% |
| Smallpox |
628 |
0.1% |
| Malaria |
3,336 |
0.3% |
| Dysentery |
2,735 |
0.2% |
| Scarlet Fever |
3,256 |
0.3% |
The seemingly insurmountable challenges medical professionals faced in 1923 were no less daunting than those faced by contemporary medicine, yet they persevered and overcame. In hindsight, their fears may seem unwarranted and many of the treatment methods used then may seem primitive if not absurd. Because of their commitment to scientific principles for the betterment of mankind, dreaded diseases of that era such as polio and smallpox are now virtually eradicated. A physician poring over medical books by candlelight in 1923 could not begin to conceive of the lasers, robotics, micro and nano surgeries that are commonplace today. We can take comfort in hoping that a century from now, others will look back on the state of medicine in 2023 and marvel at the progress that has been made.
1Source: "Malley, Marjorie. Bygone Spas: The Rise and Decay of Oklahoma's Radium Water, article, Winter 2002; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc2016875/: accessed August 7, 2023), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society."
2Source:“Principal Causes of Death, 1922.” Public Health Reports (1896-1970), vol. 39, no. 4, 1924, pp. 148–50. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/4577023. Accessed 7 Aug. 2023.
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FDA Actions to Address Shortages in Prescription Stimulants
 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA or Agency) Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA) team would like to share the following important information with you.
On August 1, 2023, the FDA and DEA issued a public statement on our ongoing actions to address shortages in prescription stimulants in the form of a Joint Letter to the Public. The letter provides an update on the current shortage situation, as well as the ongoing FDA/DEA actions being taken to resolve the shortages.
FDA’s Intergovernmental Affairs team is here to assist state/local/territorial/tribal officials, including the national associations representing them, on FDA policy-related matters. If you have questions related to this or other drug-issues, please let me know if I can assist you further. My contact information is below.
For general FDA-related inquiries, please contact FDA’s IGA staff at IGA@fda.hhs.gov
Christopher C. Campbell, M.A.
Senior Intergovernmental Affairs Specialist
Office of the Commissioner/OPLIA
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Phone (202) 680-4058
Christopher.Campbell@fda.hhs.gov
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REMINDER
Emergency Prescribing Rules Ended in May
The Federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) for Covid-19 officially expired on May 11, 2023, and with it many of the temporary rules regarding prescribing Controlled Substances via telemedicine.
During the pandemic, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) allowed telemedicine to be used instead of an in-person evaluation of patients as required by the Ryan Haight Act before prescribing Schedule II-V Controlled Substances. Without Congressional action, this exemption ended with the expiration of the PHE in May and in-person evaluations will again be required for new or never-seen patients before writing prescriptions for Controller Substances.
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Physicians who have seen a patient in-person prior to or during the PHE may continue to prescribe via telemedicine.
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When the PHE expired, at least one in-person physician visit must be scheduled for each never-seen (in-person) patient before a renewal or new prescription may be written.
Patients seen in person prior to or during PHE but who have their medications prescribed by another practitioner (covering practitioner), must be seen in person by the prescribing practitioner within two years of the last in-person visit.
Remember:
- If you had an in-person evaluation with a patient before or during the PHE period, you may continue to prescribe using telemedicine.
- If you saw a patient before or during the PHE period but the medications are prescribed by a “covering practitioner,” the patient must be seen in person by the prescribing physician within two years of the last in-person visit.
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Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988
Suicide and Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7, confidential support to people in suicidal crisis or mental health-related distress. “988” is the three-digit, nationwide phone number to connect directly to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Too many people experience a suicidal crisis or mental health-related distress without the support and care they need.
There are urgent mental health realities driving the need for crisis service transformation across our country. In 2020 alone, the U.S. had one death by suicide about every 11 minutes—and for people aged 10-34 years, suicide is a leading cause of death. There is hope. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline – previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – is a national network of more than 200 crisis centers that helps thousands of people overcome crisis situations every day. These centers are supported by local and state sources as well as the Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). As of July 16, 2022, all calls and text messages to “988” route to a 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline call center.
https://988oklahoma.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/988_2022_Toolkit_v3.pdf
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Tuesday, August 22, 2023 2:00PM CDT
The opioid epidemic continues to have a devastating impact on countless lives. One significant concern is for patients who suddenly lose access to their opioid prescriber, medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), or other controlled substances. In such cases, ensuring continuity of care becomes a critical factor in mitigating overdose risk. The Opioid Rapid Response Program (ORRP) is an interagency, coordinated federal effort to mitigate drug overdose risks among patients who abruptly lose access to a prescriber. Overseen by the U.S. Department of Health and Humans Services (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health (OASH) and coordinated by the CDC and the Office of the Inspector General (HHS OIG), the ORRP supports the continuity of care of displaced patients who otherwise might face risks of withdrawal, overdose, or other harms. During this webinar, we will discuss how preparedness and state-coordinated response efforts between law enforcement, public health and state regulatory authorities can help mitigate overdose risk.
Click here for more details or to register
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Food and Drug Administration Statement
On February 16, FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, M.D. issued a statement regarding the recommendations of an independent, external opioid-related activities review, commissioned by the Agency as part of our August 2022 Overdose Prevention Framework to address drug overdose and opioid addiction. The review analyzed the FDA’s implementation of the NASEM recommendations along with key regulatory policies and decisions, including labeling. The Ohio State University-affiliated experts who performed the review, also suggested further measures for addressing drug overdose and opioid addiction. See the FDA news release here, which also contains links to related information
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New Scam Alert: COVID-19 Test Kit and Self-Catheter Kit Medicare Fraud
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Insurance Department (OID)’s Medicare Assistance Program (MAP) warns about rising cases of Medicare fraud across the state. Recent cases of fraud focus on COVID-19 test kits and self-catheter kits.
COVID-19 Test Kit Fraud
With the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, test kits are no longer available for free after May 11, 2023. Scammers began taking advantage of Medicare beneficiaries by sending at-home COVID-19 test kits and billing Medicare for the test they never requested. Also, many beneficiaries have seen charges on their Medicare Summary Notices (MSNs) for COVID-19 tests they have yet to receive, with cases ranging from individual test kits to bulk shipments.
Since June, the MAP has received over 55 calls reporting this issue, leading to 276 unrequested COVID-19 test kits. The cumulative impact remains significant despite not every test kit leading to Medicare payment. At an approximate rate of $94 per test kit, the total payment by Medicare is estimated to exceed $18,000.
Self-Catheter Kit Fraud
Medicare recipients also reported urinary catheters being billed to Medicare when they don’t have a medical diagnosis that requires these medical supplies. The monetary implications are substantial, with Medicare being charged nearly $3,000 for each beneficiary allegedly receiving these unneeded catheters.
For more information, click here to visit the OID website
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