Join CMS at the Capitol on Feb. 21 to support prior authorization reform!

A bipartisan bill aiming to streamline and improve Colorado's prior-authorization system will be heard in the House Health & Human Services Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 21. Mark your calendar and plan to join us at the Capitol for a press conference at 12:00 p.m. before the hearing starts at 1:30. Bill sponsors Rep. Shannon Bird (D), Rep. Lisa Frizell (R), Sen. Dylan Roberts (D), and Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer (R), will be in attendance. Let us know you're coming by emailing kate_alfano@cms.org. Learn more about the bill here.

Senator Mullica honored as Defender of Medicine

Sen. Kyle Mullica receives CMS's Defender of Medicine Award. From left: COL Vice Chair Ricky Dhaliwal, MD, JD; Sen. Mullica, COL Chair Darlene Tad-y, MD; and CMS President Omar Mubarak, MD, MBA

Sen. Kyle Mullica received a standing ovation at the Feb. 7 Council on Legislation meeting as he accepted the CMS Defender of Medicine award for his work at the State Capitol. 

In his first term in the Colorado Senate, Sen. Mullica, a trauma nurse, has been a leading advocate for physician-led health care, science, and vaccines. He continues to be instrumental in opposing bills that could harm patients and supporting bills that are good for Colorado.

Liability caps are under threat - we need you in the fight!

Liability caps and professional review are under attack, and it will take a community-wide response to combat this effort. Stand with the Colorado Medical Society, COPIC, Colorado Hospital Association, Coloradans Protecting Patient Access (CPPA) and other trusted partners in safeguarding Colorado's stable liability by contributing financial support that will fuel a robust statewide ballot campaign. There are no restrictions on who can donate (individuals or businesses) or how much you can donate. As soon as possible:

• Join CPPA
• Or donate today by sending a check made out to the Colorado Medical Society with Liability Defense Fund written in the memo section, to 7351 E. Lowry Blvd, Suite 110, Denver, CO 80230, or by calling the CMS offices at 720-859-1001 Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. to make a secure contribution using your credit card.

CMS leadership is committed to this fight. "Now is the time for physicians and the community to stand up for access to safe, quality care," said CMS President Omar Mubarak, MD, MBA. "This is an emergency. If we want to stop this, we need to get active and make the investment. If we don't choose to contribute now, all Coloradans will be spending much more in the years to come."

National Advocacy Conference report

Colorado physicians and medical society staff were in Washington D.C. this week at the American Medical Association's National Advocacy Conference (NAC). At this dynamic conference, attendees heard about top federal issues in health care, received advocacy training and visited members of the Colorado Congressional Delegation. Thank you to the physician advocates who attended!

Medicaid RAC audit win!

On Jan. 30, Colorado Medical Society (CMS), Colorado Hospital Association (CHA), and the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) resolved outstanding concerns related to Medicaid audits regarding "Excessively Billed Evaluation and Management Initial Hospital Care Codes" (i.e., inpatient specialty audit). Since November 2022, there has been a coding disagreement. The resolution means HCPF will reprogram the audit to exclude these codes moving forward and resolve all existing cases flagged as part of this coding sequence that are in informal reconsideration and appeal. Read more here.

Sean Pauzauskie, MD, right, testifies before the House Judiciary Committee with Rafael Yuste, MD, PhD, chair of the Neurorights Foundation, on Jan. 30, 2024.

CMS member, Dr. Sean Pauzauskie, featured in Colorado Politics article

Dr. Sean Pauzauskie, a neurologist in Fort Collins, testified in support of House Bill 24-1058: Protect Privacy of Biological Data. This first-in-the-nation legislation sponsored by Rep. Cathy Kipp, D-Fort Collins, will protect the privacy of individuals’ personal biological data, including neural data that is collected by devices now and in the future. Read more in the article from Colorado Politics. 

Legislator meet and greet

 Do you have an interest in meeting your legislators? Let us know, and our team could help schedule a meet and greet for you in the future! Click on the button below to fill out the survey.