Ross E. Weber

"The AACU joined 1 effort calling for the administration to remove the directive that arbiters anchor their determination to the qualifying payment amount, and instead let them consider all allowable information submitted by the parties to support their offer," says Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

A “perfect storm” of Medicare cuts threatens patient care.

"In any examination of scope-of-practice issues in 2021, one cannot ignore the official 'rebranding' of PAs," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

"To overcome well-funded business interests and bureaucratic inertia, proponents of equitable prostate cancer screening coverage must essentially clear a high hurdle on a broken ankle," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

A 2017 survey found approximately 75% of urologists accepted Medicaid managed care and 90% accepted Medicare Advantage, “suggesting some discernment when it comes including Medicaid managed care in a practice’s payment mix,” writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

"The middlemen that manage insurers’ pharmacy benefits are stunningly successful in gobbling up the discounts drug makers intend to offer patients," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

"Lawmakers must prioritize medical liability protection and support health care workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

"Policymakers must be thoughtful and act in the public interest. That includes weighing the benefit of continued liability safeguards," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

"In the coming days, months, and years, physicians must be vigilant about protecting patient privacy and safety and maintaining appropriate reimbursement standards," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"The widely varying enforceability of non-compete clauses or restrictive covenants requires physicians to pay special attention to contract provisions related to compensation as well as competition," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

National politics, state advocacy issues, and innovative topics in urologic care came together as urologists from every practice setting and at varied points in their careers gathered in Washington for the AACU 2019 annual meeting.

"Overall, the 2020 Medicare payment proposal attempts to modernize the program and mitigate administrative burdens. The urologic community has identified room for improvement, however, including in the area of facilitating participation in advanced payment models," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"State funding for GME is becoming increasingly important in the absence of significant movement from the federal government," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"While the medical profession struggles most with administrative barriers to patient-centered care, cost transparency is at the root of the general population's distress," writes Ross E. Weber.

"If elected, [Greg Murphy, MD] will become part of a de facto Congressional Urology Caucus with Neal Dunn, MD," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"The administrative burden associated with payer relations and benefit management contributes to rising costs and, in many cases, affects patient care," writes Ross E. Weber of the AACU.

State and federal initiatives are starting to address regulatory hurdles.

"Surveying the landscape as leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives swaps parties and governorships creep toward a 50/50 partisan balance, several opportunities to affect positive change stand out," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"To preserve a degree of competition within the industry, lawmakers and regulators have taken tentative steps to defend independent practice and patient-centered care, as well as ensure employed providers maintain fundamental rights," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"CMS recently finalized laudable proposals for physician and ambulatory surgery center reimbursement in 2019 despite objections from powerful hospital groups and lawmakers," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

The American Association of Clinical Urologists recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with a high-profile annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Noted in many recent accounts of doctors running for Congress is the fact that, since January 2017, urologists have been fortunate to have one of their own serving in the U.S. House of Representatives-Florida's Neal Dunn, MD.

"The topic of overlapping surgery remains a misunderstood and controversial issue," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

"In recent years, lawmakers in several states considered legislation to conform their laws and exceptions to those outlined in the Stark law," writes the AACU's Ross E. Weber.

“Preauthorization has escalated beyond reason,” according to AACU President Charles McWilliams, MD.

In the Halls of Power, Project Prevention, an incentivized sterilization program, has received a "pass." It will therefore be in the operating room where Project Prevention's solution will succeed or fail.

Noted Irish playwright Oscar Wilde once mused, "Success is a science; if you have the conditions, you get the result." Thanks to a foundation strengthened by direct and indirect participation in advocacy campaigns across the country, the urologic community secured positive policy outcomes in the first several months of 2012.