Ballot open for bylaws changes, BCBS settles lawsuit, new ACS-ASTRO award, Radoncs named to NAM
October 23, 2024
| ASTRO’s ballot now open for voting on bylaws changes |
| Voting is now open on changes to the existing ASTRO bylaws, as presented at ASTRO’s Annual Business Meeting, October 1, 2024, in Washington, DC. Changes include revising the Affiliate Member Category description to make it for non-radiation oncologists; limiting the number of Board members from one institution serving on the Board at the same time; and increasing the number of supporting signatures needed for member nominations to be included on the ballot for elections to make it proportional with the number of members.
Voting will be open from today, Wednesday, October 23, until 5:00 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, November 22. View the revised bylaws and access the ballot at www.astro.org/vote. The ballot and instructions will appear once you log in with your email address and password. If you need assistance with your login information, please email Membership. Voting is conducted through a secure, online system that ensures the authenticity and secrecy of your ballot. |
| Application deadline extended for the ASTRO-BCRF Radiation Oncology Visiting Away Rotations |
| The application period for the ASTRO-BCRF Radiation Oncology Visiting Away Rotation has been extended to Wednesday, November 6. The award provides financial support to talented medical students from communities that are historically marginalized and/or underrepresented in medicine to participate in four-week clinical or research rotations. Any medical student who demonstrates an interest in radiation oncology can apply; preference will be given to medical students in their third or fourth year. Learn more on program eligibility and help us spread the word about the ASTRO-BCRF Radiation Oncology Visiting Away Rotations. |
| ASTRO Board announces ACS-ASTRO Felix Feng, MD Clinician Scientist Development Grant Award |
| This past spring, more than 100 prostate cancer researchers met in San Francisco to honor the career and lifetime contributions made by Felix Feng, MD, FASTRO. At that meeting, Drs. Karen Knudsen, CEO, and Bill Dahut, CSO of the American Cancer Society met with then ASTRO Chair Jeff Michalski, MD, MBA, FASTRO, to discuss establishing a fund in Dr. Feng’s name to support an ACS-ASTRO Clinical Scientist Development Grant Award. Over the ensuing months and after many conversations with benefactors, colleagues and friends of Dr. Feng, ASTRO is pleased to announce that the Board has approved funds to launch the ACS-ASTRO Felix Feng, MD Clinician Scientist Development Grant Award. ACS and ASTRO are partnering to further grow the fund to meet our ambitious goals and amplify the impact of our current partnership. Dr. Michalski appealed to the membership of ASTRO during the ASTRO Awards Ceremony to open their hearts and wallets and make a pledge to support research in radiation oncology, advance our field and honor Dr. Feng. |
| Two radiation oncologists elected to National Academy of Medicine |
On October 21, the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) elected 100 new members during its annual meeting. Election to NAM is one of the highest honors in health and medicine. ASTRO is pleased to announce that two radiation oncologists were elected to NAM, joining more than 2,400 members:
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| The Virtual Coding and Coverage Seminar includes the 2025 Coding Resource |
| The Virtual Coding and Coverage Seminar on Saturday, December 7, will address coding and coverage policies specific to radiation oncology, coding pitfalls, how to assign accurate coding to a clinical case study, health care reforms and their impact on radiation oncology reimbursement, and more. View the schedule for an in-depth look at what will be covered. The goal of this seminar is to make clinical coding easier to understand and apply for radiation oncology practices. Participants receive an electronic and print copy of the 2025 ASTRO Coding Resource. Don’t miss this practice-changing session. Register now! |
| BCBS agrees to pay $2.8 billion settlement in anti-trust lawsuit |
| Resolving a 12-year anti-trust lawsuit, Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) has agreed to a settlement amount of $2.8 billion, as well as provisions that will alleviate administrative burden and change how BCBS processes claims, communicates with and makes payments to providers. For more information, see What’s Happening in Washington. |
| ASTRO supports congressional “Rare Cancer Day” resolution |
| ASTRO sent a letter to Congress in support of House Resolution H.Res. 1521, designating September 30 as Rare Cancer Day. Visit What’s Happening in Washington for more details. |
| Receive alerts when new ASTRO journal articles publish |
| Stay up to date on the latest ASTRO journal articles: subscribe to Articles in Press alerts! To subscribe, visit any of ASTRO’s three journal websites, Advances, PRO or the Red Journal. Click Log In - ASTRO Member Login (single sign-on), then click on your name in the upper right corner. To receive notifications of articles as they publish online, click Alerts under Connect and then tick the boxes for Articles in Press Alert for each journal. Contact the Journals Department with any questions. |
| Elevate your practice with the RadOnc Toolbox app |
| The RadOnc Toolbox assembles all the best resources in a single app to support your evidence-based practice. The latest update features AJCC staging and easy access to eContour in addition to existing essentials such as access to ASTRO clinical practice guidelines, dose constraints and a variety of calculators. The Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI) – the ASTRO Foundation – provides this valuable point-of-care tool free of charge for all members of the radiation oncology community with support from our generous donors. Download the RadOnc Toolbox on the App Store or Google Play or visit rotoolbox.org. |
