Dear MCMS Members, Friends and Community Leaders -
The Monroe County Medical Society Leadership is asking you, county leaders, medical staff offices (both private and hospital-employed) to urge members, physicians, residents, fellows, staff, and friends and families to veto the Wrongful Death Bill by signing the petition at: https://bit.ly/3WN5q2f
Please sign the petition TODAY: call the Governor's office, use social media, and use your influence to stop this disaster. Urge Governor Hochul to veto the wrongful death bill at the MSSNY Grassroots Action Center.
As you know, MSSNY has opposed this bill at every turn, along with a broad coalition of specialty associations, hospitals, malpractice insurers (especially our close partner, MLMIC), cities and town governments and others. We have held meetings and sent emails urging action. Notwithstanding this opposition, the bill passed the Legislature. Since this summer, we have asked you and others to send letters and take other action to urge the Governor to veto the Bill. We have written over 7,000 letters to the Governor since June 1, some 1,600 in recent days (and a grand total of over 17,000 letters in 2022, mostly to our legislators).
We appreciate the effort and thank those of you who wrote multiple letters. Some 1,600 letters in the past week is a start, but not nearly enough.
We Need Your Help to Make One Last Push.
OUR ASK: Please ask all physicians, hospital leaders and the community to urge members, physicians, residents, fellows, and all staff (along with their friends and families) to sign the letter at the MSSNY Grassroots Action Center (https://bit.ly/3WN5q2f)
Ask everyone you can (including colleagues, family and friends) to send a letter, call Governor's office, use social media (tweet/post), send op-eds to your local newspaper, call the Governor’s office on January 10 (518-474-8390), and use any other influence to stop this disaster.
The wrongful death bill will expand our liability to close relatives, extend the statute of limitations time from 2 years to 3.5 years, and include compensation for companionship, anguish, and more. Liability premiums are estimated to increase by 40%, according to an actuarial study sponsored by MSSNY and the hospital associations. This will impact employed physicians as well, because your institution or large group will have less funds to pay you and your support staff. This Bill means lower income and less help for you.
Further, this bill will impact all New Yorkers – including all businesses and municipalities – with higher auto and homeowners insurance rates. Other states cap liability awards. New York does not. We need the Governor to veto this terrible bill.
Thank you for your action,
Parag Mehta, MD President, Medical Society of the State of New York (MSSNY)
Copyright ©2022 | Medical Society of the State of New York | All rights reserved
Our mailing address is: 865 Merrick Avenue Westbury, NY 11590 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Our Rochester winters can be gloomy and may lead to Seasonal Depression, clinically diagnosed as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Some symptoms can be quite severe and life threatening.
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) - Symptoms and causes
Overview. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that's related to changes in seasons — SAD begins and ends at about the same times every year. If you're like most people with SAD, your symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you feel moody.These symptoms often resolve during the spring and summer months.
www.mayoclinic.org
November is officially Lung Cancer Awareness Month. The event started back in 1995 as Lung Cancer Awareness Day. As the lung cancer community and movement grew, awareness activities increased. Therefore, it became apparent there was a need for a larger awareness campaign beyond just a day. For more information go to: https://www.lung.org/
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual campaign to raise awareness of this complex disease and fund research into its causes, treatment, and cure. Since 1985, individuals, businesses, and communities have come together every October to show their support for the many people affected by breast cancer.
For more information go to: Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester | Home (bccr.org)
By Parag Mehta, MD, President Medical Society of the State of New York
Not very long ago, New York’s physicians and other health care workers were cheered as heroes for their efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.They risked their lives for their patients. They risked the lives of their loved ones as they provided this care.
Many physicians were sickened, and some died. Countless physicians continue to wear the emotional scars from these overwhelming circumstances.
However, the cheers are long forgotten.
Now, the physicians of New York face a potential new disaster, due to a well-intentioned—but egregiously harmful—bill recently passed by the New York State Legislature.
The recent legislation would exponentially increase the damages that are awardable under New York’s wrongful death statute. One actuarial study concluded the increased damages and the new lawsuits this bill would trigger would increase liability insurance costs for New York’s doctors and hospitals by nearly 40%.
Yes, 40%.
Liability costs are already an overwhelming component of the operating costs of your local hospital and doctor’s office. Can you imagine how hard it would be to manage if your mortgage or rent payment went up 40%?
Even if the liability cost increases necessitated by this bill amounted to half of what has been predicted, such cost increases are untenable.
If Governor Hochul does not veto this bill, patient access and continuity of care could be threatened across the state as physicians move to other states with more physician-friendly environments or retire early to avoid the staggering new costs this bill would impose.
New York physicians already pay among the highest liability premiums in the country. Many already pay tens of thousands of dollars a year for their coverage. Those who provide the most critical emergency care essential to our safety net—including neurosurgeons, cardiac surgeons and OB-GYNs—often face costs of $100-200,000 per year to provide this care.
Even before COVID, New York has long received the dubious designation as one of the worst states in the country to provide care, according to wallethub.com. In addition to New York’s excessive regulations, it has by far and away the highest liability costs and insurance premiums in the country.
For example, a report from Diederich Healthcare showed that in 2019, New York once again had the highest cumulative medical liability payouts of any state in the country, a whopping 68% more than the state with the second highest amount, Pennsylvania.
This is not just because of New York’s size. It also had the highest per capita liability payment of all the State, exceeding the second highest state Massachusetts by nearly 10%.
Some in support of this legislation have argued that New York’s existing wrongful death recovery law is an outlier compared to other states’ laws. However, what is not mentioned is that many of these other states—more than 30—have also enacted comprehensive provisions to contain excessive medical liability insurance costs, including limits on damages.
It is certainly appropriate to evaluate and determine the most responsible way to address gaps in New York’s liability laws. But it must be done in a responsible manner that controls the explosive increase in costs that such new lawsuits would inevitably cause.
To preserve access to our healthcare safety net, the Governor must veto this legislation and bring together various parties to discuss how best such lawsuit expansion can be achieved responsibly.
The citizens of New York need their physicians. The Governor must veto this bill so our physicians can continue to provide care to their patients.
A Time to Act. A Time to Remember. A Time to Recover.
Share your story.
S.O.A.R.S. invites your organization to participate in The 7th Annual Scotty B. Overdose Awareness Day which will be held on Thursday, September 1, 2022 returning to Martin Luther King Jr Park, 353 Court Street, Rochester, NY 14607.
2:00 - 3:00 pm booth set up
3:00 - 7:00 pm recovery fair
7:00 - 8:00 pm candlelight vigil
S.O.A.R.S., Inc (Substance Overdose Awareness Recovery Services) is a non-profit organization whose primary goal is to reduce the number of overdoses and overdose-related deaths in Monroe and its surrounding counties.
We would like your organization to participate this year by having an informational table/booth/tent. A $25.00 fee is requested for each table to be registered. If your organization cannot participate as a vendor, please consider a monetary or in-kind donation.
S.O.A.R.S. has a 501(3)(c) non-profit status, which means that donations are fully tax-deductible (depending upon your individual status). Please return this form via email along with your organization’s logo no later than July 22, 2022 in order to be listed as a participant on all posters and flyers. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us at overdoseday2017@gmail.com.
Payment may be made to S.O.A.R.S., Inc. and mailed in advance to the address below, or paid at the registration table the day of the event.
Rebecca K. Baker, Executive Director
Overdoseday2017@gmail.com
S.O.A.R.S., Inc
Substance Overdose Awareness Recovery Services, Inc
21 Park Acre Road, Pittsford, NY 14534
585-359-2975
ORGANIZATION IS RESPONSIBLE FOR SUPPLYING ALL TABLES, CHAIRS, POP-UPS AND WRITTEN MATERIALS.
501(c)3 Disclaimer S.O.A.R.S., Inc.is a not for profit, charitable organization formed under Section 501(c)3 of the U.S. Internal Revenue code. Donations to S.O.A.R.S., Inc. are tax-deductible as charitable contributions of U.S. federal income tax purposes. There are no donation limits or restrictions on contributions to S.O.A.R.S., Inc.
Albany, NY - July 5, 2022—The New York State HPV Coalition, the NYS Department of Health and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene are united in their commitment to eliminating preventable HPV-related cancers in New York through increased vaccination. At least 30% of adolescents in New York are not fully vaccinated against HPV. To help incentivize vaccine administration, the Coalition has developed an award program to recognize health systems across the state that have excelled in increasing HPV vaccination rates among youth over the past year. The award winners and the award criteria have been posted to the Coalition website at http://www.nyshpv.org/nys-hpv-vaccination-honor-roll-awards/
The HPV Honor Roll Award has been presented to those who achieve HPV vaccination completion rates of 80% to 89% among their patients that have turned 13. Data used to determine the awards are based upon immunization registries which are managed by the State and New York City health departments. “Pediatric and family care practices with the highest HPV vaccination rates in the state deserve to be recognized for their stellar work to prevent HPV infection and save lives from cancer,” says Michael Seserman, MPH, of the American Cancer Society and Chair of the NYS HPV Coalition.
In addition to the statewide Honor Roll Awards, two practices from each region of the state were selected to be HPV Honor Roll Honorees. Regional awards focus on practices with the most improved HPV vaccination rates over the past year. “There is significant variability in HPV vaccination rates across the state. We wanted practices in all regions of the state to have the opportunity to be recognized for their hard work to get more kids vaccinated against HPV,” says Manika Suryadevara, MD of SUNY Upstate Medical University and Co-Chair of the Coalition’s Provider Education Committee.
About 14 million people, including teens, become infected with the human papillomavirus (HPV) each year. An estimated 85 percent of people will get HPV during their lives. While most HPV infections go away on their own without lasting health problems, there is no way to know if an infection will lead to cancer. HPV infection is known to cause six different types of cancer: cervical, vaginal, vulvar, anal, penile, and throat cancers. According to the American Cancer Society and the National HPV Roundtable, this 2-shot vaccine series is most effective when administered to children starting at age nine and has the potential to help prevent more than 34,000 cases of HPV-caused cancers in men and women each year.
About the HPV Vaccine
The HPV vaccine, which is recommended for children between 9 and 12 years of age, is highly effective at preventing HPV cancers and genital warts. The vaccine is very safe with more than 300 million doses given worldwide since it was first approved for use in 2006. Unfortunately, only 68% of adolescents between 13 and 17 are fully vaccinated against HPV in New York State, according to a national survey. Some of the reasons are due to misinformation, the lack of a strong provider recommendation, and the HPV vaccine not being required for school entry like other adolescent immunizations. For more information go to www.nyshpv.orgor https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/index.html
About the NYS HPV Coalition
The NYS HPV Coalition was founded by the American Cancer Society and the New York State Department of Health in 2017 to increase HPV vaccination rates and decrease HPV-related disease in New York State through education, coordination, advocacy, and leadership. The Coalition is led by 17 major public health and medical organizations in the state and is one of several action teams under the New York State Cancer Consortium. The NYS HPV Coalition website can be accessed at www.nyshpv.org
In light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, MCMS will continue to advocate for full spectrum of reproductive health care for all patients and to maintain the confidentiality of the patient-physician relationship.
Two COVID-19 vaccine products for young children are nearing the final stages of the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) process. Pfizer-BioNTech is submitting data on a THREE-dose primary series for a vaccine for children ages six months through FOUR years of age (6m–4y). Moderna is submitting data on a TWO-dose primary series for children ages six months through FIVE years of age (6m–5 y). The authorization is a multi-step clinical and regulatory process, and no vaccine can be administered until the final recommendation is issued by the CDC Director, Dr. Walensky. In preparation, this guidance includes details about BOTH products.
Click here for details...
This program may be for you if you are:
Adolescent girls (13-17)
Women 18+
Interested in participating in a 10-week program
You can reach out to the University of Rochester Department of Orthopaedics Research Team.
Phone: 585-341-9304
Email: ortho_research@urmc.rochester.edu
Flyer: https://acrobat.adobe.com/link/review?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:3d36c813-4301-3d4e-a056-608951bea939
