Advocacy Update

• Reminder: Implementation of FDA’s Laboratory-Developed Test Final Rule Webinar on May 23
• The 2024 Practice Characteristics Survey Extended Until May 17. We Need Your Participation!
• Ascension Health System Latest Victim of Cyberattack
• State Advocacy Win! Tennessee Governor Signs Test Results Bill Safeguarding Pathologists from Legal Risks
• AMA Webinar: Update on Medicare Physician Payment Reform
• Take Our News Quiz for May

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its final regulation on the oversight of laboratory-developed tests (LDTs) with some changes advocated for by the CAP. During this live presentation and discussion, CAP leaders will offer their initial analysis of the regulation and discuss the impact on laboratories. Join CAP President Donald Karcher, MD, FCAP; Council on Government and Professional Affairs Chair Joe Saad, MD, FCAP; Council on Scientific Affairs Chair, Brad Karon, MD, PhD, FCAP; and moderator Michael Fraser, PhD, CEO of the College of American Pathologists for an informative and engaging 1-hour discussion on Thursday, May 23 at 11 AM ET/10 AM CT.

Panelists will discuss:

• Overview of the final rule
• Timeline for implementation
• CAP’s recommendations adopted in final rule
• CAP’s LDT legislative advocacy efforts going forward
• Q & A

Register here! This will be recorded and available to view on-demand for anyone who cannot attend the live session.

The 2024 Practice Characteristics Survey is open, and all pathologists are asked to share critical, first-hand data from their practices to assist in shaping CAP’s advocacy priorities as it captures and quantifies changes in the practice of pathology. Pathologists are facing far too many challenges that interfere with practicing and patient care. We all agree the issues are many, including (but certainly not limited to):

• Declining Medicare reimbursement
• Increasing prior authorizations
• Fulfilling staffing shortages
• Changing practice models
• Concerns over practice scope infringements
• So many more

This is why the CAP critically needs your input to build the next advocacy agenda. The information garnered from this nationwide survey will identify the changes in pathology practice and economics to better inform CAP advocacy priorities.

How do I participate?

On April 29, all board-certified pathologists practicing in the United States (with the exception of those still in training and pathologists who are Emeritus members of the CAP) should have received an email from CAP President Dr. Karcher with a unique link to the survey. Please use this secure link to complete the 10-15 minute survey no later than Friday, May 17. If you are unable to locate your email invitation, please email PracticeSurvey@cap.org with your full name and preferred email and we will send your unique link to the survey.

What can I expect as follow-up?

Although all responses are confidential and will never be associated with any individual or any specific practice, we will share the anonymized aggregate results with participants to help inform and guide future decisions regarding your practice. In addition, because your input is a valued component to building a robust advocacy agenda, upon completion we invite you to select a $10 gift card from Amazon, Starbucks, or Visa as a small token of our gratitude.

On May 9, Ascension, which operates 140 hospitals in 19 states, reported a cyberattack. Electronic patient charts were among the systems affected. MyChart — a portal for patients to see their records and message providers — was unavailable, along with some phone services and systems for ordering tests, procedures, and medications. The health system does not have a timeline for restoring services.

On February 21, Change Healthcare experienced a cybersecurity attack that resulted in disruptions in claims processing, delayed prior authorization requests, and other major impacts on physician practices. Resources for pathologists affected by Change Healthcare cyberattack are here.

In January, the Health and Human Services (HHS) published voluntary health care specific Cybersecurity Performance Goals to help healthcare organizations prioritize the implementation of high-impact cybersecurity practices. These goals are voluntary cybersecurity practices that organizations can prioritize to strengthen cyber preparedness, improve resiliency, and protect patient health information and safety.

The CAP is assessing the effects of these recent cybersecurity attacks on pathology and reviewing the cybersecurity performance goals if they became mandatory in the future.

On May 6, the Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) signed (SB 2012/ HB 2011) into law displacing the information-blocking requirements of the federal 21st Century Cures Act for certain test results and pathology reports. The Tennessee Society of Pathology (TSP), the CAP, and the Tennessee Medical Association (TMA) successfully amended the legislation to address pathologist concerns with the initial bill. The TSP and CAP worked to safeguard pathologists and laboratories from federal legal risks under the Cures Act considered to be information blocking, resulting from delays in the release of diagnostic testing results to patients.

The TSP, CAP, and the TMA amendment removed legal and operational non-compliance risk to pathologists and clinical laboratories by placing the state legal obligation of withholding certain clinical laboratory and pathology test results and reports exclusively on the entities or persons who control the electronic health record – and not the pathologist or clinical laboratory. Tennessee is the second state, after Kentucky, that has adopted the CAP position in these laws.

On Tuesday, June 4 at 11am EST/Noon CT the American Medical Association (AMA) is having a webinar about the latest efforts on Medicare physician payment reform: what’s happening on Capitol Hill, how the AMA’s grassroots campaign is raising the volume, and what to expect on the regulatory side—particularly as the proposed rule for the 2025 Medicare physician fee schedule is expected later this summer.

Register here.

Are you up to speed on CAP advocacy news? Take our new monthly news quiz and see how many you can get right and share your results on social media.

Take the quiz.