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Baton Rouge Advocate: Millions in cuts slated for Medicaid
The Jindal administration is preparing to roll out about $860 million in cuts to the government’s insurance program that delivers health care to Louisiana’s poor — the result of newly authorized federal Medicaid funding reductions critics call disastrous.
Major health care providers said Friday they are preparing for something they know cannot be good for them or the poor, elderly and disabled once the funds are stripped from the $7.7 billion Medicaid program.
One association that provides community services to the developmentally disabled is already calling for a special legislative session to generate revenues to offset more cuts in the fiscal year that began Sunday.
Another association executive wondered whether the state could still have a viable program that meets federal Medicaid “access to care” requirements.
See on Scoop.it – Hot Topics in Healthcare Law and Regulation
Akerman – News & Publications – Supreme Court’s Health Care Reform Decision: Most Immediate Impact on Employers and Employer-Sponsored Plans
The United States Supreme Court issued a historic holding yesterday, June 28, 2012. The Court has ruled that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, together with the Health Care and Education Tax Credits Reconciliation Act of 2010 (collectively, the “Health Reform Act”), which had been signed into law in late March of 2010, is almost entirely constitutional.
This Practice Update focuses solely on the most immediate impact of the ruling on employers and the design and reporting obligations of employer-sponsored group health plans. Our discussion focuses on the requirements for employers and plan sponsors to consider in the coming months. Subsequent updates will provide details on important mandates and obligations that have application in later years or that are otherwise awaiting government interpretation.
See on www.akerman.com
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Akerman – News & Publications – Practically Speaking: What the U.S. Supreme Court’s Upholding of the Affordable Care Act Means for You
On June 28, 2012 the United State Supreme Court, by a 5-4 vote, upheld the constitutionality of the vast majority of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), including the “individual mandate.” The Court also found that while the ACA’s provisions expanding the Medicaid program are constitutional, the penalty included in those provisions for those states that refuse to participate in expansion violates the Constitution. This Practice Update will outline first the two major aspects of the Court’s ruling, the ‘Individual Mandate’ and the expansion of Medicaid, and then provide a listing of implementation dates of the ACA for your use and future reference.
See on www.akerman.com
For related articles: Scoop.it – Hot Topics in Healthcare Law and Regulation
Healthcare decision expected Thursday – Healthcare business news and research | Modern Healthcare
The U.S. Supreme Court did not issue a ruling in the healthcare reform challenges on Monday, but the court announced that the rest of its decisions will be released Thursday.
The court did, however, grant the Federal Trade Commission permission in an unrelated case to argue a closely watched hospital-merger antitrust challenge, known as FTC v. Phoebe Putney Health Care. Arguments on that case will be heard at a future date.
In the healthcare reform law case, the justices are considering whether Congress has the authority under the U.S. Constitution’s commerce clause to force nearly all Americans to purchase health insurance or pay a tax penalty. If the insurance mandate is illegal, the court will have to decide whether to negate discrete sections of the law dealing with insurance, or to strike the entire act. The court could also decide it doesn’t have jurisdiction over the question until after 2014. Finally, the justices are considering whether Congress can force states to expand the eligibility criteria for costly Medicaid programs for the poor.
Many observers in the legal and academic mainstream, including attorneys surveyed in a poll by the American Bar Association, have predicted the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will pass constitutional muster with the Supreme Court based on past commerce clause precedents. However, opponents of law have surprised the skeptics and naysayers in taking their challenges to the very cusp of victory at the hands of the nation’s highest court.
Obama administration officials say they have not prepared contingency plans in the event that the law is struck down, instead preferring to charge ahead with implementation of the law.
Republican opponents have vowed to attempt to repeal whatever sections the court does not strike down. Rep. Bill Cassidy, a physician and Republican from Louisiana, said Saturday that the GOP would not “rush through a massive bill the American people don’t support” following a repeal.
See on www.modernhealthcare.com
For related articles: Scoop.it – Hot Topics in Healthcare Law and Regulation
Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative: Barely A Ripple Now, Enormous Promise For Later – Health Affairs Blog
The initiative to prioritize primary care by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is one of the most significant and promising initiatives to come out of health reform to date.
Health Care Reform: Four Companies That Are Leading Change – Forbes
Uncertainty in the health care system is inspiring some companies to drive change and make urgent improvements, regardless of the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling.
Use of Electronic Health Record Systems in 2011 Among Medicare Physicians Providing Evaluation and Management Services
See on Scoop.it – Hot Topics in Healthcare Law and Regulation
The OIG found that 57 percent of Medicare physicians used an EHR system at their primary practice location in 2011. Twenty-two percent of physicians first began using EHR systems to document E/M services in 2011, the year that CMS commenced its incentive program. Additionally, three of every four Medicare physicians with an EHR system used a certified system to document E/M services. Finally, although many EHR systems can assist physicians in assigning codes for E/M services, the OIG found that most Medicare physicians manually assigned E/M codes.
See on oig.hhs.gov
Unraveling the IT Productivity Paradox — Lessons for Health Care — NEJM
See on Scoop.it – Changing Healthcare for the Better
There is ongoing debate about the wisdom of the $27 billion federal investment driving the adoption of health information technology (IT) under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009. Proponents expect IT to catalyze the transformation of health care delivery in the United States from a fragmented cottage industry plagued by poor quality and high costs to a highly organized, integrated system that delivers high-quality care efficiently. Skeptics suggest that the productivity benefits of health IT have been overstated, arguing that it may create safety problems and could even increase costs.
See on www.nejm.org
Simplified Analytics: Fraud detection in Medicaid/Medicare
See on Scoop.it – Hot Topics in Healthcare Law and Regulation
Experts estimate that abuses of Medicaid eat up at least 10 percent of the program’s total cost all over USA, which is a waste of more than a $80 billion a year.
See on simplified-analytics.blogspot.fr
Use of patient centered medical home features not related to patients’ experience of care
See on Scoop.it – Changing Healthcare for the Better
Providing patient care using key features of a Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH), a model of health care delivery promoted by major physician groups, may not influence what patients think about the care they receive, reports a new study in Health Services Research.
See on medicalxpress.com
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