NEW JERSEY CHAPTER, AMERICAN COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY PHYSICIANS EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT OPIATE PRESCRIBING GUIDELINES

1. Emergency department providers are committed to addressing the analgesic needs of all patients presenting for care.
2. Chronic pain syndromes are best managed by physicians with an ongoing relationship with a patient in an outpatient office environment.
3. Emergency department providers should consult the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) before writing opioid prescriptions.
4. Physicians should prescribe the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible duration for pain severe enough to require opioids.
5. Emergency department providers should not replace prescriptions for controlled substances that were lost, destroyed, stolen, or finished prematurely.
6. Unless otherwise clinically indicated, Emergency Department providers should not prescribe long-acting or controlled release opioids, such as OxyContin® or fentanyl patches.
7. When opioid medications are prescribed, the Emergency Department staff should counsel the patient regarding risks of opioid therapy, proper storage, and administration.
8. Clinically appropriate administration and prescription of opioids should be provided to patients with cancer pain.
9. Hospitals, in conjunction with emergency department personnel, play a key role in ensuring responsible opioid administration and prescribing. As such hospitals should:
   • Support emergency department practices to provide the most appropriate management to patients with chronic pain.
   • Develop care plans for patients who frequently visit the emergency department for evaluation of acute exacerbations of chronic pain. Coordination should involve the emergency department, hospital, and the primary care provider treating the patient’s pain‐inducing condition. Such care plans may include patient‐specific policies or treatment plans. Screening for brief intervention and referrals to treatment programs for patients who are at risk for developing, or who actively have, substance abuse disorders may be appropriate for these patients.
   • Recognize that parenteral administration of opioids is generally not in the best interest of a patient with an exacerbation of a chronic pain.

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Our first meeting regarding women leadership in emergency medicine was a great success!  

Doctors and medical students from all over the state joined our board meeting and then participated in a session where we talked about "Networking tips". We then had a general networking event followed by our annual Director Dinner -the speaker was incredible and thought provoking - Dr. Brenner spoke about "Building a New Model of Care For the Most Complex Patients."   

We have a few exciting upcoming events - Our next board meeting on March 2 at 9:30 am in Hamilton Township, NJ.  We will have a similar post-meeting session regarding "Negotiating Tips", starting around 12:30 pm.    

At this meeting, we will also select one attending AND one resident physician to receive FREE registration to ACEP's annual Leadership and Advocacy Conference being held March 12-15 in Washington, DC.    

If you plan to attend the March 2nd event, please RSVP to Lauren Myers at lmyers@amrms.com to allow us to accommodate accordingly.   

Homewood Suites by Hilton, 960 US 130 Hamilton Twp, NJ 08690

Thank you to Dr. Jeffrey Brenner for speaking at the 2017 ED Directors Dinner!

And a special thanks to our sponsors:

Allergan

EmCare

Janssen Pharmaceuticals

Vitas Healthcare

ACCESS TO CARE COALITION AND MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE  VOICE OPPOSITION TO PROPOSED OUT-OF-NETWORK BILL A-1952/S-1285 AND OFFER SUPPORT OF BILL A-4228

Members of the Access to Care Coalition and the Legislature held a news conference today at the State House in Trenton on December 5, 2016 to voice opposition to the Out-of-Network Bill A-1952/S-1285 and support for Bill A-4228/S2674.The group unanimously supports bill A-4228, which requires increased notice by physicians, hospitals and insurance companies to consumers about healthcare costs.    

“We want to make sure there is more transparency from health insurers, so that consumers are not hit with surprise bills for out-of-network services,” said Larry Downs, CEO, Medical Society of New Jersey. “That’s why we support Bill -4228 and oppose Bill A-1952/S-1285.”   

The Access to Care Coalition, comprised of twenty groups representing more than 10,000 physicians and other providers, came together to address inconsistencies within New Jersey consumers’ health plan coverage; to call for more transparency from health insurers and to address the issue of surprise bills that can accompany out-of-network healthcare services.   

“Many patients think if they have an 80/20 health insurance, the insurance company will pay 80 percent of the bill, but that is not always the case,” said Dr. Rajnik W Raab, a neurosurgeon.  “What often happens is that insurance companies will pay only eighty percent of the Medicare reimbursement rate, leaving patients responsible for paying much more than they expected.”

Several other physicians spoke of the difficulties they and their patients face on a regular basis in terms of out-of-network, surprise bills, including Dr. Joseph Costabile (surgery), Dr. Nicole Saphier (radiology), Dr. Mark Rosenberg (emergency), and Dr. David Dupree (surgery).