Message from ASBMR President Mary L. Bouxsein, Ph.D. – February 23, 2023

Dear Colleagues:

I want to use this month’s letter to encourage you to nominate yourself or a colleague for a Society volunteer position by the March 15 deadline and to provide an update on the Society’s efforts to realize reimbursement in the U.S. for Fracture Liaison Service (FLS).

We Need YOU!  Call for Volunteer Leadership Nominations Now Open
ASBMR members come from different backgrounds, countries, and cultures and have varied life experiences, values, and beliefs. We want our committees to reflect this richness.  We want YOU to have an opportunity to engage more deeply with ASBMR by volunteering for a committee. No experience required – just enthusiasm and ideas.

I would especially like to invite young investigators and members residing outside the US to consider volunteering. During the pandemic, we witnessed a marked decline in volunteer nominations from outside North America and we want to see this bounce back in 2023. Participation of young investigators is encouraged. In fact, young investigators serve on nearly all of our standing committees.

Committee vacancies are listed here.

We are also seeking nominations for President-Elect, Secretary-Treasurer and Councilor (three positions). Please consider engaging more deeply with ASBMR by applying for one of these positions!

Learn more about the volunteer leadership application/selection process and apply on the ASBMR website. Applications are due March 15.

Reimbursement for FLS in the U.S.
As mentioned in my December letter, ASBMR is working with the Bone Health and Osteoporosis Foundation (BHOF) to get U.S. Medicare reimbursement for FLS across the finish line this year.

To this end, during last week’s Virtual Hill Day, our members conducted more than 50 meetings with members of Congress to ask them to contact the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and urge them to create a post-fracture care code that healthcare providers can use to follow up with patients to prevent future fractures. We had an amazing response! I am thankful to each of you that took time from your busy schedules to participate in this important activity. We are also grateful to UCB for their support of the Virtual Hill Day and our work on this important initiative.

I also want to acknowledge and thank those of you that have assisted us with this initiative apart from last week’s Virtual Hill Day. Thank you for reaching out to your members of Congress, sharing your congressional contacts with us, sending emails to your elected officials, attending meetings with congressional staff, and agreeing to add your name to sign-on letters.

If you were not able to participate in our Virtual Hill Day – fear not – you can still help!

Please send a message today to your members of Congress via our easy-to-use Action Alert system.

Finally, I want to encourage you to attend this afternoon’s webinar at 3:30PM EST titled: “Does Race and Ethnicity Play a Role in Osteoporosis and its Management” being presented by Nicole Wright, PhD, MPH. My thanks to Nicole for speaking and to the Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee for programming this important topic to commemorate Black History Month. If you miss the webinar, a recording of it will be available in the Education Resource Center.

Sincerely,
Mary L. Bouxsein, Ph.D.
ASBMR President