American Association of Payers, Administrators and Networks

AAPAN's VP of Government Affairs, Lisa Anne Hurt-Forsythe provided insight into the ramifications to the workers' comp industry if the FDA reschedules cannabis. AAPAN members were privy to an in-depth update webinar on this topic, and we will continue to keep our members abreast of any developments and impacts.

Great webinar opportunity from AAPAN member Zelis.

We would like to welcome our newest member to AAPAN, SimpleTherapy. Established in 2011, SimpleTherapy is a pioneer in digital musculoskeletal (MSK) pain recovery and mental health solutions, specifically designed for employers and health plans to provide their employees and members. By integrating evidence-based exercise therapy with cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technology, SimpleTherapy delivers highly personalized care tailored to each participant's condition, limitations, and therapeutic response. As a digital health company, SimpleTherapy focuses on offering evidence-based physical therapy solutions that enhance patient outcomes while lowering healthcare costs. Learn more at: simpletherapy.com

Interested to learn more about the many benefits that AAPAN can bring to your workers' comp organization? Lisa Anne Hurt-Forsythe, AAPAN's VP, Government Affairs is attending the 2024 WCI Annual Conference, #WCI2024. Feel free to reach out to her or one of our board directors. https://lnkd.in/eANqdmTU

Want to know more about what AAPAN has been up to? Our newsletter is a great way to see what our association is doing to support our members by the providing a unified, integrated voice for payers, administrators, networks and care management organizations operating in the commercial/ government health and workers’ compensation markets. https://lnkd.in/eZvuqw9i

We would like to announce a new organization that has joined the AAPAN Board of Directors. Nexus joined the association and their CEO, Edward Bolton will be taking the board seat. Bolton established Nexus, a utilization review and medical cost containment company which initially served the worker's compensation system in Texas. Nexus is now a nationally accredited utilization management firm, which has expanded with national acquisitions in the commercial health UM/IRO industry and international customer base.

AAPAN has a few updates to our Board of Directors, Michele Hibbert has assumed the board seat for Enlyte/Mitchell and Patricia Shupard will be taking over the seat for Sedgwick/CareWorks. Michele Hibbert is currently Senior Vice President of Regulatory Compliance Management and Governmental Affairs/Relations for Enlyte. Hibbert’s background over the past 35 plus years has been in Health Informatics, Epidemiology, Regulatory & Governmental Affairs, Fee Schedule development, Clinical and Medical Database management. Patricia Shupard is Vice President of Medical Networks for CareWorks. Shupard is responsible for the medical networks that support the medical management team in delivering quality provider options to injured workers and ensures both best practices and quality-driven outcomes. Shupard has 29 years of experience working with PPO networks.

Attending IAIABC Central States Association Spring Seminar this week? Don't miss AAPAN's VP of Government Affairs, Lisa Anne Hurt-Forsythe as she dives into the impact that the rescheduling of marijuana will have on workers’ compensation.

AAPAN is featured in the June 2024 IAIABC Member Spotlight.

Join, AAPAN's VP of Government Affairs, Lisa Anne Hurt-Forsythe at the IAIABC Central States Association Spring Seminar, June 13 from 3:15-4:30pm. in Madison, WI. The discussion will focus on: Rescheduling Marijuana: Implications for Workers’ Compensation. On April 30, 2024, it was reported that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) planned to move marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) The planned change followed an August 2023 recommendation from the Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS). Although the change will still have several additional regulatory steps, the move is seen as one the most impactful policy changes that the DEA has made in 50 years. This session will provide an overview of the change including the federal regulatory process, the potential legal consequences, and the implications/questions that we should all be asking in Workers’ Compensation.  The session will include both slides and small group discussions. https://lnkd.in/eBVvtrnC