Tell Your Legislator to vote NO on HB 1251, Optometrist Surgery Bill
According to a new statewide poll, nearly 65% of Arkansas voters oppose legislation that would allow optometrists to perform eye surgeries with lasers and scalpels. Currently, only specially trained medical doctors, such as ophthalmologists, can perform those types of procedures. The poll, conducted by Impact Management Group for…
CMS 2019 Updates You Need to Know
CMS is finalizing a number of documentation, coding, and payment changes to reduce administrative burden and improve payment accuracy for office/outpatient evaluation and management (E/M) visits over several years. For calendar years (CY) 2019 and 2020, CMS is implementing several documentation policies to provide immediate burden reduction, while…
Save the Date: AMS Annual Membership Meeting – April 26
Join fellow physicians at the 2019 AMS Annual Membership Meeting on Friday, April 26 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Little Rock. This one-day meeting will provide CME opportunities, as well as a chance to discuss advocacy efforts from the legislative session and to network with your peers. …
Read the February issue of the Journal
The February issue of the Journal of the Arkansas Medical Society is now available and accessible to everyone! Check it out! https://joom.ag/qxTa We are always looking for interesting content that would appeal to our members, so if you have a story or topic that you would like to see…
Legal Symposium Now On Demand
At the first annual AMS Legal Symposium, physicians and office managers heard from subject matter experts on important legal issues that could negatively impact their careers and practices. If you missed the opportunity to attend this seminar back in November, you now have the chance to view the sessions…
Help Shape Your Profession: AMS Seeks Candidates for Board of Trustees Positions
To nominate, see the form below. Qualified candidates are being sought for district trustee positions on the AMS Board of Trustees. The Board consists of the major officers (i.e. president, secretary, treasurer, etc.) and at least two trustees representing 10 geographic areas of the state. Candidates are elected…
Viswanathan Joins AMS Board of Trustees
Dr. Nisha Viswanathan, a board-certified Internal Medicine physician, has joined the AMS Board of Trustees, representing District 2. She is currently a hospitalist and core faculty member of the IM residency program at White River Medical Center in Batesville. Dr. Viswanathan attended UAMS for medical school and trained…
New Bylaw Changes, House of Delegates Merged with Board of Trustees
At the Fall Meeting held on November 2 in Heber Springs new AMS Constitution and Bylaws were approved by the officers, district trustees and members in attendance. The new bylaws eliminated the House of Delegates and transfered its responsibilities to the Board of Trustees and/or general membership. An…
Supreme Court Kills Tort Reform
At 10 a.m. this morning, the Arkansas Supreme Court blocked Issue 1 (tort reform) from being considered by Arkansas voters. On behalf the staff and leadership of the AMS, we owe a great deal of gratitude to the many Arkansas physicians, clinics, specialty societies and county societies who,…
Arkansas Radiologist and former State Legislator Elected to AMA Board of Trustees
CHICAGO - The American Medical Association (AMA), the nation’s largest physician organization, announced the election of Arkansas radiologist Scott Ferguson, M.D., to its Board of Trustees. “I have spent my career fighting to preserve physician choice and autonomy, patient protections and the physician-patient relationship,” said Dr. Ferguson. “As a…
Will Medical Marijuana Help Reverse the Opioid Crisis?
Article originally appeared in the July 2018 issue of The Journal. For my colleagues who have been practicing medicine for at least 20 years, the path leading to the current opioid crisis is familiar. With the conceptualization of pain as a “fifth vital sign” by the American Pain…