Joe Johnson,DC, of Paxton, Florida, has been appointed to take the seat of Jerilynn Kaibel,DC, on the Practicing Physicians' Advisory Council (PPAC). The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 created the PPAC to advise the secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Health Care Finance Administration* on Medicare regulations. (*HCFA has been renamed the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services - CMS.)
The PPAC is composed of 15 physicians who have billed at least 250 Medicare claims in the previous year: 11 must be MDs or DOs; the remaining four must be "physicians practicing in rural areas and underserved urban areas."
In 1992, Jerilynn Kaibel,DC, of San Bernardino, California, became the first chiropractor appointed to the PPAC.
"Dr. Kaibel has had such a tremendous impact on the people at HHS over the years," observed ACA President Daryl Wills,DC. "She has opened so many doors for the profession, as evidenced by the appointment of Dr. Joe Johnson to the PPAC."
Tom Scully, an administrator with the CMS, recognized Dr. Kaibel's contributions to the council during Dr. Johnson's swearing-in on December 10, 2001. Mr. Scully expressed his eagerness to begin working with Dr. Johnson, and noted that the PPAC would become "more involved in the HHS than it has been in years past."
Dr. Johnson is described as a "Native American practitioner serving in a medically underserved area in Florida." In 1998, Dr. Johnson became chairman of the Health Care Practitioner Advisory Council (HCPAC) of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), the accrediting body for managed care organizations. He was also a member of the executive committee of the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee.
"I am thrilled at the prospect of serving my country and the chiropractic profession," Dr. Johnson said. "While it is exciting for me personally, it is even more significant for our profession."
The PPAC meets quarterly in Washington, D.C.
