2023 August AANnews

2023 FALL CONFERENCE REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

Save Before August 31

Registration is now open for the 2023 AAN Fall Conference, offered October 27 through 29 both in person at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel and online. No matter how you attend, the conference will promise innovative programming with updates on relevant neurologic topics, practice management and science sessions, and opportunities to earn valuable end-of-year CME. If joining us in person, you’ll also have opportunities to network with colleagues and external companies that have products and services to advance your practice and improve patient care.

Early registration savings end August 31. To get an even better value— and gain extended access to session recordings, program materials, and ability to claim CME through August 1, 2024—consider adding Fall Conference On Demand to your registration for a savings of up to 55-percent off the standalone On Demand price.

Capitol Hill Report: FDA Approves Lecanemab for Alzheimer’s

On July 6, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted traditional approval to lecanemab, brand name Leqembi, for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

This much anticipated traditional approval will significantly change the availability of the drug that had originally gained accelerated approval in January of this year, as it will now be covered in the context of “prospective comparative studies” which promise to be much less burdensome on patients and providers alike than the previous coverage option which necessitates participation in randomized controlled trials to gain access to the drug. Coverage issues impacting this product have been of significant interest both to regulators and to members of Congress.

The distinction between these coverage options can be found in the National Coverage Determination (NCD) published in April of 2022 which restricts access to all monoclonal

Call for Abstracts for the 2024 Annual Meeting

Abstract submission for the 2024 Annual Meeting opens later this month. Visit AAN.com/AMAbstracts to learn more and submit your breakthrough research.

Abstracts will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. CT on October 17, 2023, in all subspecialties and career levels. The non-refundable submission fee is $125 for AAN members and $225 for nonmembers. Submission is free for residents and medical students. For more information, contact Katie Anderson at science @ aan.com 

The Mission of the AAN is to promote the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care and enhance member career satisfaction.

The Vision of the AAN is to be indispensable to our members.

Contact Information

American Academy of Neurology

201 Chicago Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55415

Phone: (800) 879-1960 (toll free) (612) 928-6000 (international)

Email: memberservices@ aan.com

Website: AAN.com

For advertising rates, contact: Michael J. O’Brien II

Account/Relationship Manager

Wolters Kluwer

Phone: (978) 578-4514

Email: Michael.Obrien @ wolterskluwer.com

August Highlights

4

Trainees: Combine Subspecialty Expertise with Case-based Learning

Residents and fellows looking for subspecialty education can now combine two AAN resources with didactic and case-based interactive learning on the same topic.

8 Have You Been Asking Yourself These Same Practice Questions?

The practice @ aan.com email inbox is an efficient way to reach Academy staff and member experts with your practice-related questions about payer relations, MIPS/MACRA, coding, and practice management.

10

Meet Your New Board Member: Nimish A. Mohile, MD, FAAN

Nimish A. Mohile, MD, MS, FAAN, is the Ann Aresty Camhi Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester, where he serves as the division chief of neuro-oncology and the associate chair for academic affairs. He is a graduate of Duke University, where he first became inspired by neuroscience.

AAN Chief Executive Officer: Mary E. Post, MBA, CAE

News Briefs

Medical Student Focus Groups Offer Input

Editor-in-Chief: Melissa W. Ko, MD, MBA, CPE, FAAN

Managing Editor: Angela M. Babb, MS, CAE, APR

Editor: Tim Streeter

Writers: Ryan Knoke and Sarah Parsons

Designer: Siu Lee

Email: aannews@ aan.com

AANnews® is published monthly by the American Academy of Neurology for its 40,000 members worldwide. Access this magazine and other AAN publications online at AAN.com.

The American Academy of Neurology ’s registered trademarks and service marks are registered in the United States and various other countries around the world.

“American Brain Foundation” is a registered service mark of the American Brain Foundation and is registered in the United States.

The inclusion of advertisements and/or promotions of Sponsors and other Internet sites or resources that offer content, goods, or services on the Website does not imply endorsement of the advertised/promoted products or services by AAN.

At focus groups held at the 2023 Annual Meeting, medical student members said they appreciate membership benefits such as reduced pricing for Annual Meeting registration, NeuroBytes videos, Neurology Question of the Day, and the many scholarship opportunities.

When asked about additional ways the AAN can support medical students, students indicated interest in formal mentorship opportunities, additional educational content such as a medical student podcast, and career advising. Resources are especially important for students at schools without much neurology support.

Industry Evaluations Give High Marks to 2023 Annual Meeting

The expansion of the Industry Therapeutic Update program at the

2023 Annual Meeting to include lunchtime programs was well received by industry partners, with many events well attended or at capacity. In a survey of Annual Meeting exhibitors, 87 percent of respondents rated the overall value of their on-site exhibiting experience as high or moderate. Half plan to exhibit at the 2024 Annual Meeting in Denver, CO.

American Brain Foundation Creates Ambassadors Council

The American Brain Foundation's newly founded Ambassadors Council unites AAN members with public advocates in the fight against brain disease. The council supports the Foundation in its work to raise awareness and funds for brain disease research. The council includes artist and advocate Susan Schneider Williams; former NFL star Ben Utecht; AAN Past President James C. Stevens, MD, FAAN; Peter Goadsby, MD, PhD; and Joseph I. Sirven, MD, FAAN. 

40,000 Reasons Why the AAN Is Driven to Succeed

The mission of the AAN is to promote the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care and enhance member career satisfaction. As we enter the second half of 2023, I want to update you on our recent work to succeed in this mission.

Recruit and Retain Members

We are very proud that, entering our 75th year, recruitment continued to grow as we surpassed 40,000 members for the first time. Our efforts year to date look strong in increasing the number of US neurologists, advanced practice providers, and student members. What is particularly remarkable is that our retention numbers have been enviable at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic put great pressure on organizations and associations such as ours. Our total membership grew five percent in 2020, four percent in 2021, and three percent in 2022. All indications are for continued growth for 2023—which tells us that the AAN is successfully providing significant value to those we serve.

Grow and Strengthen the Neurology Workforce

Again, because your AAN leaders are your peers, the Academy recognizes staffing issues and burnout, reimbursement frustrations, challenges to revenue flows coming into practice, and the demand to meet productivity targets. We know recruitment is a huge task and how difficult it is to find neurologists, particularly general neurologists. We know that more documentation is not improving patient care, and regulations like prior authorizations are the number one thing members want to change. Our determined advocacy efforts have helped push back regulations on telehealth. We have scored big wins that benefit not only practitioners but their patients as well, who can access the help they need with greater convenience. Telehealth, remote neurology, and artificial intelligence will play increasingly important roles in delivering care and the AAN remains vigilant against any attempts to impede progress.

Enhance Advocacy Engagement

Speaking of advocacy, nearly 200 of your colleagues went to Washington, DC, in March to participate in Neurology on the Hill. They told members of Congress about your frustrations with prior authorization, the need to reform the Medicare Physician Payment System, and how increasing funding for NINDS, the VA Neurology Centers of Excellence, and the BRAIN Initiative is imperative for the nation’s health. We are now preparing for the next Legislative Summit on September 22 in Washington.

Even with the commitment of invaluable member volunteers, we can’t do what we do without more neurologists getting involved in grassroots advocacy. Your participation is essential! The success of our Action Alert emails—where you can easily contact your members of Congress in as little as 60 seconds—makes a big difference. Please respond when you see these Action Alerts in

your email and learn more about how you can be an advocate for your patients and profession at AAN.com/advocacy

Strengthen Neurologists Through Education

The AAN’s education products have been reviewed by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and awarded full accreditation for four years as a provider of continuing medical education for physicians. Accreditation in the ACCME system assures the medical community and the public that the AAN delivers education that is relevant to clinicians’ needs, evidence-based, evaluated for its effectiveness, and independent of commercial influence.

We have been adding to our vast education offerings Academywide, in our Annual Meeting and conferences—such as last month’s new Summer Conference with its focus on emergency and hospital neurology—as well as convenient online learning resources, including a Neurology Question of the Day (QOD) pilot with a number of questions from the 2023 RITE® (Residency Inservice Training Exam). The QOD pilot is designed to assess the quality of the questions and encourage more residents to practice answering clinical neurology questions before sitting for the RITE.

Advance the Brain Health Initiative

The Academy is deep into planning our second annual Brain Health Summit, which will be held on September 21 in Washington, DC. This year, we are expecting attendance to double to more than 200 experts from organizations from across the US, such as NINDS, AARP, and industry leaders. We plan to announce more advances in brain health at this summit and are working on another declaration of National Brain Health Day.

Our work in this area has crossed borders, as well, as AAN leaders have promoted our efforts in Mexico, Sri Lanka, India, and Europe at the recent European Academy of Neurology Brain Health Summit. We also had the pleasure of our international colleagues sharing their perspectives at our Annual Meeting in Boston in April. We also participated in the World Federation of Neurology “World Brain Day” on July 22.

Promote and Expand Neuroscience Research

Research is the vital element in treating and curing brain disease, and the AAN is steadfastly committed to supporting the bright minds who will bring us those treatments and cures.

Continued on page 4 ›

Jackson

40,000 Reasons Why the AAN Is Driven to Succeed

continued from page 3

We recently launched our call for applications for the 2024 AAN Research Program Funding, and you can learn more about these many career-lifting opportunities at AAN.com/ ResearchProgram. In this issue of AANnews® , we announce the call for abstracts for the 2024 Annual Meeting, which will be held next April 13 to 18 in Denver. The Academy continues to promote research though the Neurology® journals and other platforms like the Annual Meeting and AAN.com

Promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

While the AAN exists as the home of everyone in neurology, we recognize that the need for equity and inclusiveness has never been greater, both within our profession and in our communities. Our work to address health care disparities is constant and Annual Meeting programming advanced these efforts, as well as compelling research articles in our journals.

Encourage Member Wellness

Nobody better understands the challenges our members continue to face post-pandemic than your peers who serve as voluntary leaders in the AAN. Like you, they work in the clinics, classrooms, and labs, and they experience the same pressures you do when it comes to regulatory burdens, the need to constantly demonstrate value, and the financial impact on your work. The Academy continues to fight against these encroachments on your time, energy, and sense of fulfillment you draw on to keep going each and every day. The Wellness Subcommittee has been busy increasing the number of resources for individual members and organizations, and I encourage you to visit AAN.com/wellness to avail yourself of them.

The vision of the AAN is to be indispensable to our members. Amid the vast challenges you face in today’s health care environment, you can count on the AAN to have your back. All 40,000 of you! 

Trainees: Combine Subspecialty Expertise with Case-based Learning

Residents and fellows looking for subspecialty education can now combine two AAN resources with didactic and case-based interactive learning on the same topic.

The Virtual Resident Education Lecture Series and NeuroPanels, both live webinars, will focus on the same topics for the next three months. Trainees can learn from experts in the lecture series earlier in the month, then follow-up with case-based learning later in the month.

August—Neuro-oncology

August 3, 11:00 a.m. CT

Virtual Resident Education Lecture Series

Roy E. Strowd III, MD, FAAN

August 22, 6:00 p.m. CT NeuroPanels

Lauren Rhea Schaff, MD

Nimish A. Mohile, MD, FAAN

September—Neurocritical Care/Pain Medicine

September 14, 11:00 a.m. CT

Virtual Resident Education Lecture Series

Angela N. Hays Shapshak, MD

September 19, 6:00 p.m. CT NeuroPanels

David M. Greer, MD, FAAN

Starane A. Shepherd, MD

October—Neuromuscular Medicine

October 24, 6:00 p.m. CT NeuroPanels

Kelly G. Gwathmey, MD

Yaacov Anziska, MD

Webinars are free, but registration is required. Visit A AN.com/NeuroPanels for more information. 

Carlayne E. Jackson, MD, FAAN President, AAN

@aan.com

Sleep Neurology Explored in Continuum

The latest information on sleep neurology is presented in the August issue of Continuum: Lifelong Learning in Neurology ®

Guest Editor Anita Valanju Shelgikar, MD, MHPE, FAASM, said, “The authors have done an excellent job explaining the clinical features and diagnostic frameworks for sleep-wake disorders. New pharmacologic treatments are available for central disorders of hypersomnolence, broadening the range of options that neurologists can present to their patients. Some of these medications have novel mechanisms of action, which represents exciting advancements in the translation of neurobiology to patient care.”

Topics in this Continuum issue include:

ƒ Clinical Neurobiology of Sleep and Wakefulness / Pablo R. Castillo, MD

ƒ Clinical Evaluation of the Sleepy and Sleepless Patient / Samuel A. Taylor, Jr, MD, MS

ƒ Central Disorders of Hypersomnolence / Margaret Blattner, MD, PhD; Kiran Maski, MD, MPH

ƒ Obstructive Sleep Apnea / Karin G. Johnson, MD, FAAN, FAASM

ƒ REM Sleep Behavior Disorder and Other REM Parasomnias / Roneil Malkani, MD, MS

ƒ Non–REM Sleep Parasomnias / Andrew R. Spector, MD

ƒ Restless Legs Syndrome and Other Common Sleep-related Movement Disorders / Meena Khan, MD, FAASM

ƒ Circadian Rhythm Sleep-wake Disorders / Flavia B. Consens, MD

ƒ Insomnia / Scott Kutscher, MD; Christine Juang, PhD, DBSM

ƒ Sleep Disorders in Patients with Neurologic Disease / Joyce K. LeeIannotti, MD

ƒ Sleep Disorders in Childhood / Althea Robinson Shelton, MD

ƒ Sleep Deprivation and Its Consequences / Oleg Y. Chernyshev, MD, PhD

ƒ Implications of Sleep Health Policy: Daylight Saving and School Start Times / Karin G. Johnson, MD, FAAN, FAASM; Beth A. Malow, MD, MS, FAAN

The issue includes a postreading self-assessment and test with the opportunity to earn up to 20 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ toward Self-assessment CME.

AAN members pay only $399 per year for a subscription to Continuum® and Continuum® Audio. Subscribe now by contacting Wolters Kluwer at (800) 361-0633 or (301) 223-2300 (international) or visit shop.lww.com/continuum. AAN Junior members who are transitioning to neurologist memberships are eligible to receive a 60-percent discount on the already low member rate for the Continuum and Continuum Audio subscription. 

Training Programs Achieve UCNS Accreditation

The United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties (UCNS) has accredited four new fellowship training programs. Programs attaining UCNS accreditation status offer the core curriculum established by the subspecialty and meet required quality standards established by UCNS.

Fellows who complete a UCNSaccredited program meet the training eligibility requirements to apply for certification in the subspecialty.

Programs and directors accredited effective June 2023:

Headache Medicine

University of Alabama, Birmingham

Emily Schlitz Fortenberry, MD

University of Pennsylvania

Seniha Ozudogru, MD

Interventional Neurology

Wright State University

Esteban Cheng-Ching, MD

Neurocritical Care

Wright State University

Gnan Thakore, MD

Training programs interested in applying for accreditation will find application and program requirement information for each subspecialty under Accreditation at UCNS.org. Applications received by the January 31, 2024, will be reviewed for accreditation in the spring of 2024. Visit UCNS.org for more information on accreditation. 

Shelgikar

2023 Fall Conference Registration Now Open—Save Before August 31

continued from cover

Friday, October 27

Practice Management

Leadership University

Payvider: Minding the Gap* Leading the Self—Knowing Who You Are and What You Want

Neurology Updates

Morning

Staffing*

Lunch Exhibit Hall Lunch

Reducing Administrative Burden*

Exhibit Hall Break

Afternoon

Turning Conflict into Collaboration: A Neuroscience Based Tool to Better Lead Yourself and Your Team: Part I

Turning Conflict into Collaboration: A Neuroscience Based Tool to Better Lead Yourself and Your Team: Part II

LHS* Systems Leadership: Leadership Insights

Exhibit Hall Reception

Saturday, October 28

Practice Management

Artificial Intelligence*

Neurology Updates/Continuum®

Neuro-critical Care and Concussion*

Best-of from 2023 Annual Meeting

Dementia and Neuroimaging* Atypical Parkinsonism*

Cerebrovascular Disease and Functional Neurological Disorders*

Neuro-ophthalmology and Neuro-otology*

Multiple Sclerosis and Autoimmune Neurology*

Neurology Year in Review Plenary Session*

New Therapies for Migraine and Other Headache Disorders*

Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Neurology*

Best-of from 2023 Annual Meeting

Neurologic Conditions in Transgender Patients*

Morning

Exhibit Hall Break

Building Service Lines* Headache and Epilepsy*

Lunch Exhibit Hall Lunch

Coding*

Continuum Test Your Knowledge: A Multiple-choice Question Review 1*

Microlearning: Cerebrovascular Disease*

Afternoon

Beyond the Bedside: Integrating APPs* Continuum Test Your Knowledge: A Multiple-choice Question Review 2*

Sunday, October 29

Neurology Updates

Neuroscience in the Clinic: Myasthenia Gravis: From Pathogenesis to Targeted Therapies* Anti-amyloid Therapy Bootcamp*

Infections of the Nervous System*

Best-of from 2023 Annual Meeting

Morning Movement Disorders and Infectious Disease* Epilepsy Therapy Update*

Neuromuscular and Autonomic Disorders*

*Offers CME or SA-CME

Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein Antibody Disorders (MOGAD)*

AAN Advanced Practice Provider Pre-conference on October 26

Come a day early and attend the Advance Practice Provider Pre-conference on Thursday, October 26. Learn more at AAN.com/Fall.

Exhibit and Sponsorship Offerings Available

Impressed by the content? Use this opportunity to showcase products and services that are critical for neurology professionals and their patients. Find information about sponsorships and exhibits on our website. 

Capitol Hill Report: FDA Approves Lecanemab for Alzheimer’s

continued from cover

antibodies (mAbs) for the treatment of AD. The AAN has been engaged with CMS and other key stakeholders with the goal of modifying these coverage restrictions in order to ensure appropriate access to new therapies in this space for more than two years.

That engagement culminated in an official NCD reconsideration request submitted to CMS by the Academy on June 12 that would remove certain patients from the current coverage restrictions based on the availability of persuasive peer-reviewed evidence of the drug’s safety and efficacy for those patients.

While the AAN awaits a response to our request, we continue to engage with CMS to work within the existing coverage mechanisms to support our members and their patients who are navigating these changing circumstances.

To that end, Academy staff have met with CMS to discuss a recent fact sheet released by the agency regarding a web portal being developed to facilitate the required data reporting associated with the “prospective comparative studies” required for coverage.

The AAN will continue to monitor developments in this space, as additional information is released by CMS.

Latest Advocacy News

ƒ On June 22, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposed new pathway for coverage of innovative new medical devices known as the Transitional Coverage for Emerging Technologies (TCET) pathway. TCET is voluntary and aims to reduce uncertainty about coverage options through the use of coverage with evidence development processes to expedite Medicare coverage of certain Breakthrough Devices. The AAN is currently reviewing this proposal and plans to submit formal comments.

ƒ On June 30, CMS released a revised guidance for the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program that was established by the Inflation Reduction Act and is set to begin forcing negotiation on the most costly drugs beginning in 2026. This revised guidance seeks to prevent potential exploitation of certain provisions of the program aimed at protecting small biotech firms and manufacturers of drugs designated for treating rare, or orphan, diseases. The AAN continues to monitor the development of this program and will provide comments as appropriate.

DATES & DEADLINES

AUGUST

August 3

Registration Opens: AAN Fall Conference AAN.com/Fall

August 31

Early Registration Deadline: AAN Fall Conference AAN.com/Fall

SEPTEMBER

September 7

Submission Deadline: 2024 Annual Meeting Course Proposals AAN.com/CourseProposal

September 14

Speed Networking: Neurology Career Center Careers.AAN.com

Application Deadline: 2024 Research Program Grants AAN.com/ResearchProgram

September 15

Brain Health Awareness Day

September 21

Brain Health Summit

September 28

Advance Registration and Hotel Deadline: AAN Fall Conference AAN.com/Fall

October

October 17

Submission Deadline: 2024 Annual Meeting Abstracts AAN.com/AMAbstracts

October 23–29

Neurology Career Week Careers.AAN.com

October 27–29

AAN Fall Conference in Las Vegas and Virtual AAN.com/Fall

Have You Been Asking Yourself These Same Practice Questions?

The practice @ aan.com email inbox is an efficient way to reach Academy staff and member experts with your practice-related questions about payer relations, MIPS/MACRA, coding, and practice management. Staff experts respond within one business day and, if needed, can seek real-world guidance of the Practice Support Network, a group of 30 practicing neurologists and graduates of the AAN’s Practice Leadership Program, or the Business Support Network, a group of six business administrators in various practice settings. Below are some common questions that have come into the inbox recently.

Payer Relations

Q: How can our small practice use comparative data with local neurologists to assist with payer negotiations?

A: On June 14, 2023, the AAN’s Care Delivery and Coding and Payment Policy Subcommittees hosted an “Ask Me Anything” webinar about payer relations. The panelists provided various recommendations for negotiating with payers, including the importance of telling the story behind your practice’s data. For example, a practice with radiology (MRI) is more likely to demonstrate a higher use of diagnostic services, but this ultimately may be more efficient than sending the patient to the hospital for the same service. Adding context to your patient population and practice pattern data can help payers become more receptive to your individual reimbursement proposal. Additionally, the AAN’s annual Neurology Compensation and Productivity Survey can serve as a valuable benchmarking tool. Payers are often influenced by quality data, and whether you participate in MIPS or use the Axon Registry ®, you should be able to articulate how your practice may offer a shorter wait time, higher patient satisfaction, or promote administrative savings. For more information, recordings of the AAN’s Practice Management Webinars can be found at AAN.com/education/practice-education-webinars

Quality Payment Program

Q: My neurology group applied to waive MIPS reporting due to COVID-19 in 2020. Are MIPS reporting flexibilities still available after the end of the public health emergency?

A: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will continue to offer relief related to COVID-19 to Merit-based

Incentive Payment System (MIPS)-eligible clinicians, groups, and APM entities. CMS has indicated that the Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception will be available for the 2023 MIPS performance year, as it has been since 2020. This means that MIPS-eligible clinicians and groups may submit an application requesting reweighting of one or more MIPS performance categories. The 2023 application is available at qpp.cms.gov/mips/exception-applications. You can learn more about MIPS and the Quality Payment Program at AAN.com/QPP

Payment Policy

Q:If I use modifier 95 to indicate a service was furnished via telehealth, do I also need to include a place of service code?

A: In the 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule, CMS clarified that practitioners should continue to bill using modifier 95 in addition to the place of service (POS) code that corresponds to where the service would have been furnished in person. The POS code “10” indicates that the patient received telehealth services in their home, whereby “home” indicates a location other than a hospital or other facility. POS code “02” should be appended to claims for telehealth furnished in locations other than a patient’s home. Through the remainder of 2023, CMS will reimburse practitioners for telehealth at the same rate as if the service were furnished in person. This includes maintaining the payment parity that was initiated during the public health emergency for telehealth provided in non-facility settings. For more information about telehealth, visit AAN.com/telehealth 

MIPS Reporting: Comparing Axon Registry Scores to All Neurology

The desired outcome of Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) reporting is for a clinician or group to receive a positive payment adjustment applied to the clinician’s or group’s Medicare reimbursements. So, how do MIPS scores reported from the Axon Registry ® compare to MIPS scores reported for neurology as a whole?

Much better, as it turns out.

To make this comparison, we used the most current MIPS scores available, which are from 2020 from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). AAN staff compared the 2020 MIPS final scores from the Axon Registry against the 2020 MIPS final scores of all neurology individual and group submissions. For 2020, there were 90 individual and group MIPS submissions through the Axon Registry compared to about 7,600 neurology individual and group MIPS submissions to CMS.

Comparisons

For individual 2020 MIPS reporting, the average MIPS final score for Axon Registry submissions was more than 10-percent higher than the average MIPS final score for all neurology submissions.

ƒ Average 2020 MIPS final score via Axon Registry— 70.65 points

ƒ Average 2020 MIPS final score for All Neurology— 63.47 points

For individual 2020 MIPS submissions, 87 percent of Axon Registry submissions received a positive payment adjustment (or with an exceptional performance bonus) for 2022 Medicare payments. On the other hand, among all neurology 2020 MIPS scores only 46 percent of individuals reporting received a positive adjustment (or with an exceptional performance bonus). Only in the Positive Adjustment Plus Exceptional Performance Bonus segment did the All Neurology contingent outperform the Axon Registry contingent.

Furthermore, 53 percent of all neurology individual 2020 MIPS submissions received a neutral payment impact for 2022 Medicare payments, compared to zero percent of the registry participants.

No group MIPS score analyses were performed as the CMS MIPS score data didn’t provide details for the composition of each group. Group MIPS reporting is done at the tax identification number (TIN) level, meaning a group MIPS score analysis would compare multispecialty groups to neurology groups.

A great benefit of Axon Registry participation is the opportunity to perform MIPS reporting using neurology-specific quality measures. Neurology clinicians may have a positive impact on neurology-specific quality measure performance within their practice. To learn more about the Axon Registry or to enroll, visit AAN.com/axon or contact registry @ aan.com 

Vascular Neurologist—Ascension Saint Agnes—Saint Agnes Hospital—Baltimore, MD, United States

Seeking Fellowship trained Vascular neurologist to direct our dual certified Primary Stroke Program by The Joint Commission (TJC) and Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services System (MIEMSS). Working with 4 other multi sub-specialty trained neurologists for inpatient consultations and outpatient clinical activities. Program includes our well-established cerebrovascular service with gold and elite plus status. The program infrastructure includes our dedicated Nurse Practitioner and Stroke coordinators. Current director planning retirement. For more information reach out to Kelly Morin, Director, Operations at Ascension at kmorin@ascension.org 

AANnews® Classified Advertising

The AAN offers a complete package of print, online, and in-person recruitment advertising opportunities. Visit careers.AAN.com for all AAN options, rates, and deadlines.

Ad copy for the October 2023 print edition of AANnews must be submitted by September 1, 2023. The same deadline applies to changes/cancellations.

The American Academy of Neurology reserves the right to decline, withdraw, or edit advertisements at its discretion. Every care is taken to avoid mistakes, but the responsibility for clerical or printer errors does not exceed the cost of the ad.

distribution graphs are shown below.

New Neurology Compensation and Productivity Data Now Available

The 2023 Neurology Compensation and Productivity Survey broke records with more than 4,900 AAN participants. Members who completed the survey now have FREE access to the dashboard to explore a wealth of data—including new data on practicing in the fulltime telehealth model and delivering care in the inpatient setting.

The dashboard provides easy-to-use filters and new data points to allow you to:

ƒ Filter neurologist compensation data by subspecialty, geographic region, and more

ƒ View benchmarking for advanced practice providers

ƒ Find out average on-call rates and duties

MEET THE BOARD

Participants may access the dashboard at AAN.com/Benchmark

The Academy thanks the thousands of members who completed the survey, because without you, we could not maintain the survey’s status as the largest and most robust source of neurology data available. With this essential resource, neurologists, advanced practice providers, and

business administrators can find the data needed to make informed decisions, analyze gaps, and identify opportunities. Members who did not participate in the survey may access the data for $500 ($1,500 for nonmembers). A complimentary executive summary is available at AAN.com/Benchmark to obtain a sneak peek at the insightful information. 

Meet Your New Board Member: Nimish A. Mohile, MD, FAAN

Nimish A. Mohile, MD, MS, FAAN, is the Ann Aresty Camhi Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester, where he serves as the division chief of neuro-oncology and the associate chair for academic affairs. He is a graduate of Duke University, where he first became inspired by neuroscience. As an advocate for advancing equity in the profession of neurology, Mohile aspires to help organizations become fully inclusive and equitable entities. At the AAN, he is currently the chair of the Anti-racism Curriculum Working Group and has taken on the role of chair for the newly created Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

How did you initially get involved as a volunteer member for the

AAN?

I first got involved in the AAN by attending Neuro-oncology Section meetings and dinners at the Annual Meeting. They were fantastic opportunities to network, make friends, and find collaborators. A conversation at one of these dinners led me to propose my first (and still favorite) course at the Annual Meeting, “Neuro-oncologic Emergencies.” As an early career member that no one knew, with no prior experience and no connections— the AAN gave me an opportunity based on a good idea and a willingness to do the work. I loved that about the AAN! In the following years, I sought out ways to get engaged in leadership programs and educational courses, doing reviews for Neurology (in italics) He means the journal. , and serving on committees. Today, I have the privilege of chairing the Neuro-oncology Section and in that role, I work intentionally to find ways to help section members identify opportunities in the AAN.

Why did you wish to be on the Board of Directors?

The AAN has committed itself to becoming a diverse and equitable organization and I genuinely believe that over the next decade, the AAN will have a profound impact on diversity, equity, and inclusion for neurologists in all settings. We have

an opportunity to create a diverse cadre of future neurologists and provide members with the tools and resources they need to provide equitable access to care and research for their patients. I am excited and feel inspired to work with, contribute to, and help steer an organization with that kind of commitment.

What experiences and viewpoints do you bring to this role?

I bring the experience of an academic neurologist, a neurooncologist, a clinical trialist, and a diversity officer. I have also spent a lot of time developing mentoring programs, strengthening faculty development, and reforming how we think about promotions and tenure. In all these roles, I have really tried to improve, reform, and modernize the processes, structures, and culture of academic neurology to make it more fair, transparent, and equitable. But what I love most about my job is seeing patients and I hope that I can also offer the perspectives of my patients who too often feel like our understanding of neurologic disease is not advanced enough, that accessing research is complicated and cumbersome, and receiving great medical care seems harder every day. 

Mohile

Transforming Leaders Program Helps Graduate Become a More Effective, Mindful Advocate and Leader

The AAN’s Transforming Leaders Program was created specifically for innovative leaders with aspirations to transform their practice community and field of neurology. And that’s exactly what Geetanjali S. Rathore, MD, FAAN, has done.

Since graduating from the program in 2022, the associate professor of the Department of Neuroscience and Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and medical director of the Comprehensive Pediatric Neuromuscular Program at the Children’s Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha, NE, has amassed an impressive number of successes that are making a real impact both at her institution and in her state.

“I acquired a lot of very pertinent skills during the Transforming Leaders Program that helped me become a more effective and mindful leader and advocate,” said Rathore. “To name a few: understanding different leadership personalities, recognizing my own leadership style, and, with the help of personal coaching sessions, building upon my strong traits.”

Rathore is quick to point out that these skills have been particularly useful in her co-chairing UNMC’s Department of Pediatrics Antiracism Committee and leading the UNMC’s WE STRIVE (Women Engaged: Support, Training, and Resources to Improve Vitality and Excellence), an interdisciplinary association of women and allies whose mission is to create a culture that advances the vitality and excellence of women at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine that includes equitable rights, benefits, opportunities, and outcomes.

“Working with the extremely talented group on our Transforming Leaders Program group project was an invaluable experience from which I gained so many new ideas, diverse techniques, methodology, and styles. I also became more confident about giving critical feedback and confronting issues for the overall benefit of the project/group. I also understood the value of having the big picture and building towards it.”

Since graduating, Rathmore has had the opportunity to participate in AAN’s Annual Meeting event planning, be part of work groups for curriculum building, serve on child neurology grant review committees and Maintenance of Certification planning groups for the Child Neurology Society, and many more meaningful roles where she has been able to provide leadership in the field of neurology. More recently, she was elected the treasurer of the Association of Indian Neurologists in America and the chair of the organization’s Education Committee. “These provide an outstanding opportunity to engage global neurologists and impact neurological care here and in India,” she said.

“[Through the Transforming Leaders Program] I learned how to communicate my vision/goal to the other stakeholders in a much more engaging way while still focusing on the ‘why,’” Rathore explained. “As the medical director of the Comprehensive Pediatric Neuromuscular Program, I have been able to bring more than 12

subspecialties to dedicate their time to this clinic, and have been able to establish the gene therapy program for SMA and other neuromuscular disorders at the organization. Through these services, we have been able to provide comprehensive and state-of-the-art care to children with neuromuscular disorders in the state of Nebraska.”

And then there are the unbreakable, lasting relationships that are a cornerstone of any AAN Leadership Program experience. “The lifelong connections I made with my Transforming Leaders Program participants, mentors, AAN staff, and the engagement opportunities with other AAN members throughout the world is something that I am most grateful for,” said Rathore. "The inclusive selection process and engaging nature of the program has been commendable. I surely had a significant transformation into an effective advocate for my colleagues, my patients, and, also, myself.”

Indeed, she has. This past spring Rathore was honored with the American Academy of Neurology’s Kenneth M. Viste Jr., MD, Patient Advocate of the Year Award in recognition of the tireless advocacy efforts she has championed to improve health care in the state of Nebraska and within her own hospital, making her not only the first pediatric neurologist, but also the only neurologist from state of Nebraska to receive the prestigious award. The multi-month Transforming Leaders Program was created for mid-career, innovative leaders with aspirations to transform their practice community and field of neurology and equip them with the advanced knowledge and skills to have greater impact and influence. Learn more at AAN.com/TLP

ƒ AbbVie

ƒ Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease

ƒ argenx

ƒ Harmony Biosciences

ƒ Genentech, a Member of the Roche Group

ƒ Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

ƒ Alnylam Pharmaceuticals

ƒ Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.

The 2023 AAN Transforming Leaders Program was supported in part by:

Rathore

AAN Represented at 9th Annual Congress of the European Academy of Neurology

President Carlayne E. Jackson, MD, FAAN, and AAN staff attended the recent Annual Congress of the European Academy of Neurology in Budapest, Hungary. Not only did Jackson have the opportunity to meet many existing AAN members in Europe, she also participated in several discussions on the AAN’s efforts to improve brain health and promoted membership in the AAN. 

Congratulations New Fellows of the American Academy of Neurology!

The AAN congratulates the following members who were named prestigious Fellows of the American Academy of Neurology (FAAN) between April 2023 and June 2023.

Ahmad Abulaban, MD, FAAN

Mohammad Saad Alangari, MD, FAAN

Dara V. Albert, DO, FAAN

Husam Hashim Alkhersam, MD, FAAN

Julius B M Anang, MD, FAAN

Adel A. Aziz, MD, FAAN

Rubina Bakerywala, MD, FAAN

Luca Bartolini, MD, FAAN

David R. Benavides, MD, PhD, FAAN

Jaishri Blakeley, MD, FAAN

David B. Burkholder, MD, FAAN

Javier Cardenas, MD, FAAN

Honglei Chen, MD, PhD, FAAN

Sun Ju Chung, MD, PhD, FAAN

Ann Marie Collier, MD, FAAN

Steve M. Cordina, MD, FAAN

Merit E. Cudkowicz, MD, MSC, FAAN

Shannon M. DiCarlo, MD, FAAN

Divyanshu Dubey, MD, FAAN

Marisela E. Dy-Hollins, MD, MSCR, FAAN

Ahmed El-Dokla, MD, FAAN

Maria Alejandra Gonzalez Duarte, MD, FAAN

Stephen Goutman, MD, FAAN

Steven Alexander Gunzler, MD, FAAN

John L. Hinton, MD, FAAN

Anthony Izzo, DO, FAAN

Nuri Jacoby, MD, FAAN

Karlo J. Lizarraga, MD, MS, FAAN

Robert Steven Meadows, MD, FAAN

Shyamal Mehta, MD, PhD, FAAN

Kimberly E. Monday, MD, FAAN

Lauren R. Moo, MD, FAAN

Sarah Mulukutla, MD, MPH, FAAN

Sanjeeva Reddy Onteddu, MD, FAAN

Julia Willamena Patriarche, PhD, FAAN

Page B. Pennell, MD, FAAN

Cornelius Robens, MD, FAAN

Fahed Saada, MD, FAAN

Rocio A. Santibanez, MD, FAAN

Soma Sengupta, MD, PhD, FAAN

Ajay Shukla, MD, FAAN

Kara M. Smith, MD, FAAN

Bashir Ahmed Soomro, MBBS, FCPS, FAAN

Christoph Stretz, MD, FAAN

Carlos Bernardo Tauil, MD, FAAN

Brett J. Theeler, MD, FAAN

Susama Verma, MD, FAAN

Cristina Victorio, MD, FAAN

Sarah Nath Zallek, MD, FAAN 

Interested in Elevating Your Membership Status to FAAN?

Visit AAN.com/FAAN to see if you’re eligible to apply for the FAAN designation—or encourage a qualifying colleague to apply.

Applying for FAAN status is free, acknowledges exemplary work and achievements in the neurosciences, the clinical practice of neurology, or academic/administrative neurology; helps set you apart both within the Academy and throughout your professional career; and offers eligibility to serve on the AAN Board of Directors. 

Jackson with World Federation of Neurology President Wolfgang Grisold (second from right) and past WFN presidents Profs. Raad Shakir, William Carroll, and Vladimir Hachinski.

From left: EAN TV host Conny Lee; Prof. Paul Boon; Prof. Claudio Bassetti; Carlayne E. Jackson, MD, FAAN; and Prof. Vladimir Hachinski.

AAN Global Strategy Manager Suzanne Henn; member Avin Aphrodite Babakhani, PhD; and Senior Director of Membership Christi L. Kokaisel, MBA, CAE, CCXP.

Academy Evolved to Meet Needs of Members in Private Practice

After completing his residency at the University of Minnesota in 1948, young Joseph A. Resch, MD, joined the neurology and psychiatry clinic of Harold Noran, MD, in downtown Minneapolis. While his mentor A.B. Baker was launching the AAN, Resch was on the cusp of a new era.

“As far as I know, I was the first one who was going to do only neurology,” Resch said in 2008, “but to be honest I had to do psychiatry because my office did it. So, for a number of years I did psychiatry, but I worked a lot to build up neurology. That was my role and I can remember Dr. Baker, when we were at a meeting at St. Paul, wanted to tell this very well-known psychiatrist and neurologist that I was getting by with doing some neurology. The guy wouldn’t believe it and he said, ‘Joe, show me.’ I kept a little card of the consults I was doing, so I showed the guy my month’s work. I would list what they had and so on, and the old man [Baker] wanted to show him. He said, ‘You see? He’s doing this!’”

While the AAN was designed to serve as an alternative to the American Neurological Association and include clinic-based practicing neurologists, academic members of the Academy held sway over the organization and controlled the key leadership positions—including president. By the mid-1960s, this created fissures in the organization. “About 15 years after the AAN had gotten going, it too went in the direction of academia, answering the needs for courses in neuropathology, neurophysiology, etc.,” recalled Herbert E. Rosenbaum, MD, FAAN, in 2008. “All but excluded were the interests of private physicians. There began an uproar to where the clinicians said, ‘The hell with them,’ and launched the Society of Clinical Neurologists, and later the Southern Clinical Neurological Society and others. These were organizations where clinical neurologists would have some degree of shared interests and a little pride. That sort of went to where, if carried far enough, it could fragment the Academy.

“About 1967, at the Annual Meeting, Joe Foley was past president, and he and I were very good friends. We got together in the bar and had a few drinks and I told Joe, ‘You are going to lose the whole damn Academy if you don’t change its attitude. It’s going into the mode of ANA and it’s not proper.’

Menninger Clinic in Topeka. We were able to get this thing going.

“It came at a good time because Medicare was being born. The government was interested in guidelines for various specialties. The Practice Committee took over and published the first guidelines for hospitalization of neurology patients. That started us off. Nelson Richards came along after that [as chair of the Practice Committee]. He was the first member in private practice to become president of the organization. I was on nominating committee. For several years I tried to get a practicing physician into office. They felt they were obliged to compete with the academicians. But Nelson was accepted and the relationship between the clinical practitioners and academicians improved.”

Nelson G. Richards, MD, FAAN, had been involved in many societies and their committees including the American Medical Association, American College of Physicians, American Society of Internal Medicine, and helped form state and local neurological societies. “I joined the ASIM, where I got my orientation experience in practice management. I was exposed to their activity and became active in their committees. I carried this experience to the Academy organization during my presidency. Advice from their membership, staff, and executive director was very supportive in my understandings of medical organizations and committees. Advice came along during difficult times at the Academy. I used my observations at ASIM for the structure of the Academy.”

As Past President Jack Whisnant noted in The American Academy of Neurology: The First 50 Years, “Nelson Richards helped elevate the importance of the practice of neurology and our role in supporting this. This was evidenced by the growing role of the Practice Committee, which shifted from staffing support provided by the American Society of Internal Medicine to Academy-staff support in the early 1980s. The Practice Committee focused its sights on issues affecting reimbursement and third-party payers, Medicare, and neurophysiological tests.”

Joseph

“Joe asked, ‘What can be done about it?’ “I said, ‘If you are really serious, I would like to start a practice committee,’ which we did not have at that time. Joe said ‘Okay, will you do it?’ I said I would try. I was chair for the ensuing five or six years. I worked with Jack Segerson, head of neurology at the

According to Laura B. Powers, MD, FAAN, past chair of the Medical Economics and Management Committee, Richards was also instrumental in developing the AAN’s relationship with the American Medical Association, especially in the areas of CPT and the Relative Value Update Committee (RUC). “Nelson, through his leadership, managed to acquire a permanent seat for the AAN at the RUC, which

Joseph A. Resch, MD, FAAN

M. Foley, MD, FAAN

Laura B. Powers, MD, FAAN, with 1998 Practice Committee members Francis I. Kitteridge, Jr., MD, FAAN; Elliott L. Mancall, MD, FAAN; Nelson G. Richards, MD, FAAN; and William H. Stuart, MD, FAAN

Herbert E. Rosenbaum, MD, FAAN

Academy Evolved to Meet Needs of Members in Private Practice

continued from page 13

is really quite an achievement considering the size of our society,” Powers said.

Richards explained the RUC as “the committee of the AMA that establishes the levels for reimbursement in relationship to other specialties’ reimbursements. Our members, Drs. Marc Nuwer, Neil Busis, and Bruce Sigsbee, were very active and successful at the RUC for the AAN, adjusting our fees of imbursements for EEGs, EMGs/ NCVs, consultations, and follow-up.”

Bruce Sigsbee, MD, FAAN, who served as president from 2011 to 2013, said, “Nelson was really, in a very real sense, a lone voice in the Academy, really trying to tell people how important it was that you attend these meetings as they’re putting the whole new coding system together and to really be able to move that coding system forward, and often on his own time was spending time in Washington, and really began the process of getting the Academy involved in just this kind of role, and now it’s considered essential. We would not consider ignoring these kinds of opportunities to really—as much as we can— modify what happens in Washington.”

The new Practice Committee’s responsibilities were expansive, including ethics, legal affairs, federal health policy and legislation, quality standards, and technology assessment. Over the years, several Practice Committee subcommittees were elevated to the level of full committees to reflect their significant scope of responsibility, including Legislative Affairs, Medical Economics and Management, and Ethics, Law, and Humanities. New subcommittees were formed in response to emerging issues, such as Patient Safety, Practice Improvement, and Quality Measurement and Reporting. This evolution of new or renamed leadership groups has continued to present day to better reflect and act upon the needs of members.

In 2004, the Academy established the Business and Research Administrators in Neurology Society (BRAINS) to help practice managers navigate the steady stream of changes in the office environment. In 2008, the Business Administrator membership category was created and BRAINS evolved into a work group under the leadership of the Practice Management and Technology Subcommittee. Support for business administrators has continued, most recently with the first Business Administrators’ Day held at the 2023 Annual Meeting, a day dedicated helping administrators navigate the changing health care landscape, grow in their careers, and network with colleagues.

The AAN has continually expanded the number and type of tools it offers members in practice, from Annual Meeting and regional conference courses to online ICD-9 and guidelines tools to EHR vendor reports and quality measurement tools for pay-for-reporting and pay-for-performance initiatives.

Guidelines, Quality Measures, and Registry Help Improve Health Care

Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, published in Neurology® ,

have been a mainstay of the Practice Committee’s efforts, through the efforts of Quality Standards Subcommittee and Therapeutics and Technology Assessment Subcommittee. The guidelines, initially considered by some as “cookbook medicine,” have increased in popularity as members have better understood them to be guides to patient care that do not supplant their professional skills and judgments as neurologists. The guidelines are often supplemented with clinician summaries and patient versions, as well as slide shows, and case studies. In 2004, they were recognized as the only guidelines to receive perfect marks in all domains used by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in determining the quality of guidelines. The AAN’s 100th guideline was published in 2006.

In 2009, practice management webinars were introduced to help share information about changes in coding and reimbursement and help members identify ways to be more efficient in their practices.

The following year, the Academy received $1 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop and disseminate evidence-based guidelines on muscular dystrophy. A position statement was published on evaluation and management of sports concussion, which helped set the stage for the first Sports Concussion Conference in 2015. The Academy developed resources and tools for coaches, trainers, athletes, and the public to spread awareness of the dangers of concussion and goals for safe treatment.

After two pilot issues, the 2012 premiere of Neurology® Clinical Practice, edited by John R. Corboy, MD, FAAN, and provided free to members, became the first of several offshoot publications from the Neurology® journal. Corboy stated the new journal would “feature a variety of articles, including those that explore problems confronted while caring for a complex patient or addressing an ethical challenge. Reports will offer analyses of office-based and health policy issues and will introduce new drugs and devices that may affect patient care…. We hope this journal becomes an important part of your ongoing education, especially as it relates to maintenance of certification.”

Just as the Academy had reached out to bring practice managers into its membership, advanced practice providers were welcomed in 2014 and immediately attracted 228 new members. As of the beginning of 2023, that number had grown to more than 1,900.

After considerable discussion over the years, in 2015 the AAN embarked on its most ambitious project to date: the Axon Registry®, a free US member benefit designed to capture and use clinical data to improve quality of care and demonstrate the value of neurologists

Bruce Sigsbee, MD, FAAN

2011 Guideline Committee

both in private practice and in large institutions. To a great extent, this was the brainchild of Bruce Sigsbee, MD, FAAN, a private practice neurologist who served as president from 2011 to 2013. “Actually, there was a task force that looked at it and it was felt that it wasn’t time,” recalled Sigsbee. “Then a couple years later, there was another task force that I had the privilege of being on that really moved this idea forward, and the reason—there’s been people who have said, ‘Why do we need this? I know what to do. I’m well-educated, I stay up to date with my care.’ But I’ve become a real fan of measurement. As Lord Kelvin said centuries ago, that ‘You can’t improve what you can’t measure.’….One of the things that we all struggle with is medicine changes very quickly and by choosing the right quality measures—if it’s really been clearly shown that a different approach to a disease really makes a big difference—then we conclude that in a quality measure and really try to help accelerate the integration of that change in care into day-to-day practice. There was a study in Great Britain where they found that it was an average of 18 years before new knowledge got integrated into day-to-day practice. Basically, a generation, and obviously that’s not a good thing for us or our patients.”

The registry was set up to seamlessly collect data from electronic health records so as not to be a burden to the neurologist. “It’s done in the background,” said Sigsbee, “which is really fantastic. You can’t ask physicians to do more checkboxes. So, if you can do this somewhere in the background where it captures it without really any major change in documentation or anything else and not more click boxes, fantastic, and that’s what I think we really set up here.” The Axon Registry helps improve patient care in tandem with reducing administrative burden by automatically collecting quality improvement data and simplifying CMS Quality Payment Program reporting for proper reimbursement and Part 4 Self-assessment for Continuing Certification. Since 2016, the number of quality measures in the registry has expanded from 25 to 49.

Resources Created for Wellness, Reimbursement, COVID-19

Through the 2010s, the Academy tackled numerous problems, from physician burnout (myriad resources and tools for members, as well as studies from the AAN Wellness Task Force published in Neurology) to the high costs of neurologic drugs (a Drug Pricing Task Force helped influence Congress to start a congressional investigation into high drug costs for multiple sclerosis, for example) to creating the AAN Principles for Health Care Delivery to address health care reform. The AAN continued to advocate with commercial payers for appropriate coverage of neurologic therapies to decrease the burden on providers. It also advocated on behalf of members and helped them understand the Medicare Access and Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) and

informing members about changes in how clinicians are reimbursed through the Quality Payment Program (QPP), the Advanced Alternative Payment Models (Advanced APMs) and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). Practicing neurologists also benefited in 2020, when the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services gave the Academy a hard-earned advocacy victory on reimbursement increases for E/M coding and telehealth expansion.

The Academy has seized on novel ways to help extend support to members. Between 2017 and 2019, 24 small and solo practices were visited through the Practice Ambassador Program to better understand their challenges, listen to their feedback, and uncover themes to aid in resource development to help them thrive in practice. And in 2017, the Practice Leadership Program was launched to provide selected participants an intensive six-month opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills to better manage their practice as well as lead staff and office management. Graduates of this program join the Practice Support Network, a group of practicing neurologists available to assist answering questions that come into the practice@aan.com inbox, which was created as an efficient way to reach Academy staff and member experts with practice-related questions about payer relations, MIPS/MACRA, coding, and practice management.

When the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in early 2020, sharing accurate, timely information with members became a major priority. The COVID-19 Neurology Resource Center at AAN.com/COVID19 and weekly COVID-19 Neurology Resource Center digest email kept members up to speed about diagnosis and treatment experiences around the globe, what researchers were uncovering, as well as additional resources from the AAN and others. As relief rolled out from Congress, the Academy provided members with helpful webinars and resources to understand the Small Business Paycheck Protection Program, Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program, and other opportunities. Resources were produced to help members successfully use telehealth to maintain virtual visits with patients and guidance to safely reopen their neurology practices. And as the pandemic abated, the Academy has helped members understand the winding down of government programs.

Thanks to the determination and passion of “pioneers” like Resch, Rosenbaum, and Richards, practicing neurologists have benefited from leaders who have come from their ranks with the experiences and insights necessary to help the AAN deliver on its mission to promote the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care and enhance member career satisfaction. 

2015 Payment Summit

President Terrence L. Cascino, MD, FAAN, (rear) with 2018 Practice Leadership Program participants Ramy El Khoury, MD, and Kita L. Williams, MD.