Bipartisan bill would repeal health insurance tax
The Hill
February 15, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/283443-bipartisan-bill-would-repeal-health-insurance-tax
Reps. Charles Boustany Jr. (R-La.) and Jim Matheson (D-Utah) reintroduced a bill Friday to repeal the health insurance tax in President Obama's healthcare law.
The health insurance tax is set to raise about $100 billion over 10 years to help pay for the coverage expansion in the healthcare law, the bulk of which will likely come from private insurance.
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The Health Care Cost Problem is Bigger Than Health Care Inflation
National Review
February 15, 2013
http://www.nationalreview.com/agenda/340797/health-care-cost-problem-bigger-health-care-inflation-reihan-salam
Ezekiel Emanuel observes that the rate at which U.S. health care spending grows year to year has been declining “for about a decade now“: Since 2004 — nearly four years before the economic downturn — the rate of health care inflation per person has been just 0.8 percent higher than the growth of the G.D.P. Between 1965 and 1993, for comparison, it was 3.2 percent higher. What Emanuel doesn’t address is that, as Noah Millman noted a while ago, U.S. per-capita health spending has been broadly in line with other affluent market democracies for longer than the last decade. The big reason the U.S. is a health spending outlier is that its level of health care inflation per person was substantially higher than the average among affluent market democracies throughout the 1980s
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Report: HHS to cut off enrollment for health law's high-risk pools
The Hill
February 15, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/283557-report-hhs-to-cut-off-enrollment-for-health-laws-high-risk-pools
The Health and Human Services Department will soon stop accepting new applicants into insurance pools for people with pre-existing conditions, The Washington Post reported Friday.
President Obama's healthcare law established new state-by-state insurance pools for people who had been denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition. The high-risk pools were designed to serve as a bridge to 2014, when such denials will become illegal.
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3 GOP governors say they won't work with feds on 'ObamaCare'
The Hill
February 15, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/283539-3-gop-governors-say-they-wont-work-with-feds-on-obamacare-exchanges
Three Republican governors said Friday they will not work with the Obama administration to establish new insurance exchanges in their states. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam said they would not embrace a "partnership" model for their exchanges — the central component of President Obama's healthcare law. All three had previously rejected purely state-run exchanges. Friday is the deadline for states to decide whether they're interested in a partnership — a model in which the state and the federal government would share responsibility for operating a new insurance marketplace.
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Senate Democrats air grievances with rollout of healthcare law
The Hill
February 14, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/283141-dems-grill-obama-administration-in-tough-healthcare-hearing
Democrats who supported President Obama’s healthcare law grilled a top Health and Human Services official Thursday over what they see as holes in the implementation effort and the White House’s political bargaining. Gary Cohen, the director of the HHS office overseeing the bulk of the healthcare law’s implementation, fielded tough questions from several Democrats.
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Health Care’s Good News
The New York Times
February 14, 2013
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/14/health-cares-good-news/
THINK about it. When was the last time you heard the phrases “good news” and “health care costs” in the same sentence? I can’t remember either. Most of the recent talk about health care spending has been pretty bleak. Just take a look at the Rate Review Tool on Healthcare.gov and you’ll know why. Major insurers are proposing painful, double-digit premium increases in 2013. In California, Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield of California and Aetna all announced rate increases of 20 percent or higher for some of their customers. Many are taking this as a sign that, despite its intentions, the health care reform law is failing and costs are going up as a result.
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Iowa Senate Taking Up Health Care Nullification
Tenth Amendment Center
February 14, 2013
http://blog.tenthamendmentcenter.com/2013/02/iowa-senate-taking-up-health-care-nullification/
Iowa joins the growing list of states considering bills that would completely nullify the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Late last month, Republican Senators Kent Sorenson, Randy Feenstra and Mark Chelgren introduced SF81, an act declaring the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act invalid, null and void, and of no effect in Hawkeye State. The legislation directs the legislature to block any attempts to set up Obamacare in Iowa. It shall be the duty of the general assembly of this state to adopt and enact any and all measures as may be necessary to prevent the enforcement of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act within the limits of this state.
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Gov. Bob McDonnell cuts state employee hours to avoid Obamacare costs
Examiner
February 14, 2013
http://washingtonexaminer.com/gov.-bob-mcdonnell-cuts-state-employee-hours-to-avoid-obamacare-costs/article/2521645
About 10,000 Virginia public employees are poised to see their hours cut back as Gov. Bob McDonnell continues to find ways around what he said were President Obama's costly health care reforms.
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CMS posts two updates to EHR incentive FAQs
PhysBizTech
February 14, 2013
http://www.physbiztech.com/best-practices/cms-posts-two-updates-ehr-incentive-faqs
In its ongoing effort to keep eligible professionals (EPs) apprised of how the EHR Incentive Programs operate, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced on Feb. 13 two updates to the agency's FAQ system.
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Health Care Exchange Announces Benefit Plan Choices
KPBS
February 13, 2013
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2013/feb/13/health-care-exchange-announces-benefit-plan-choice/
Californians can now get an estimate of what health insurance might cost next year when the affordable care act fully kicks in. The Covered California website offers a wealth of information. The website spells out the copays and deductibles for consumers who will have to buy their own health insurance. These costs and the monthly premiums will vary depending on the type of plan selected.
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Four Key Questions for Health-Care Law
The Wall Street Journal
February 13, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324432004578301854019979968.html
Thanks to the Supreme Court and Barack Obama's re-election, the Affordable Care Act—"Obamacare" to foes and a few of its friends—isn't going away. The issue now is how it will work. Even by Washington standards, implementing this law is extraordinarily complex. The federal government last year issued 70,000 pages of guidance, including 130 pages on the look of websites for new marketplaces where many will shop for insurance.
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Wisconsin governor hints at middle ground in Medicaid growth
Modern Healthcare
February 13, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130213/INFO/302139983/wisconsin-governor-hints-at-middle-ground-in-medicaid-growth
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has watched quietly in recent days as a handful of other Republican governors decided to accept billions of dollars from the U.S. government to expand Medicaid as part of the federal health care overhaul. Walker planned to reveal Wednesday whether he will go along with those six GOP governors, stick with 11 others who have rejected the expansion, or chart his own course somewhere in the middle. He was to announce his plans in a speech about entitlement reform before the state's chamber of commerce.
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Rep. Upton unsure of another repeal vote on Medicare cost board
The Hill
February 13, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/282823-upton-unsure-of-another-ipab-repeal-vote
A top Republican committee chairman said he's not sure the House will vote again to repeal President Obama's controversial Medicare cost-cutting board. Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), who leads the Energy and Commerce panel, said Wednesday that plans for the current legislative term are still in the works. Those plans may or may not include another repeal vote for the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), a major source of enmity for Republicans, he said.
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Illinois to partner with HHS on healthcare exchange
The Hill
February 13, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/282855-illinois-to-partner-with-hhs-on-healthcare-exchange-
The Health and Human Services Department gave conditional approval Wednesday to a "partnership" insurance exchange in Illinois. HHS has been pushing states toward a partnership model if they're not prepared to run their entire exchange alone but also want to retain some control over the new marketplace, rather than ceding it entirely to the federal government.
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California healthcare exchange sets benefits and costs for plans
Southern California Public Radio
February 13, 2013
http://www.scpr.org/news/2013/02/13/35939/california-healthcare-exchange-sets-benefits-and-o/
The state's healthcare exchange, Covered California, began a small revolution Wednesday when standardized benefits and costs were unveiled for insurance plans it will begin selling next year. The federal government's Affordable Care Act requires most people to have insurance by January 1, 2014. The law requires insurance companies to offer certain minimum benefits to consumers, but California’s health care exchange — which will offer one-stop shopping for individuals and small business owners — are taking it a step further.
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21 states ready for healthcare exchanges
UPI
February 13, 2013
http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2013/02/13/21-states-ready-for-healthcare-exchanges/UPI-46561360810748/
Illinois is the 21st state to be approved to operate a healthcare exchange, with enrollment to begin in October, a top U.S. health official said Wednesday. Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said the exchange -- called a State Partnership Marketplace -- would allow Illinois to make key decisions and tailor the available options to local needs and market conditions.
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OVERNIGHT HEALTH: Walker rejects Medicaid expansion
The Hill
February 13, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/282999-overnight-health-
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is the latest Republican to buck the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion. Walker said Wednesday that he won't take part in the expansion, but he has a new plan to cover his state's low-income uninsured population. Walker fell in line with most of his GOP colleagues, who have rejected the Medicaid expansion out of staunch opposition to the healthcare law and concern that federal funding won't come through as promised.
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State of the Union fact-check: Is PPACA slowing health care cost growth
Employee Benefit News
February 13, 2013
http://ebn.benefitnews.com/news/state-of-union-fact-check-ppaca-slowing-health-care-cost-growth-2730857-1.html
Although health care in general and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act specifically were but a footnote in Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, President Obama may have raised eyebrows when he claimed that “already, the Affordable Care Act is helping to slow the growth of health care costs.” After examining the numbers and speaking to one health care expert, EBN finds that the president’s claim is not so cut and dried.
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House passes bill to create license standards for health care exchange
Atlanta Journal Constitution
February 13, 2013
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/house-passes-bill-to-create-license-standards-for-/nWNn9/
The Georgia House passed a bill Wednesday that would require health insurance navigators to be licensed in order to help uninsured Georgians and businesses use a federally backed online health insurance exchange. House Bill 198, introduced by Rep. Richard Smith, R-Columbus, would establish training and licensing procedures for the navigators, whose positions are required elements of the Affordable Care Act. The navigators cannot advise consumers to opt for specific plans, but they can help consumers learn about Medicaid eligibility, federal tax subsidies and health plan options.
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Haley on HealthCare: Part One
Redstate
February 13, 2013
http://www.redstate.com/2013/02/11/haley-on-healthcare-part-one/
Now that Barack Obama has been sworn in for a second term, the focus will again turn to ObamaCare and health care exchanges. A key component of ObamaCare, health care exchanges are to be set up by the states giving consumers a limited amount of options to purchase health care in their state. Those that traditionally cannot afford to purchase health care will be given tax credits. Additionally, the federal government will also help cover co-pays and deductibles that aren’t covered by insurance. New taxes and a large fine for not having any health care coverage will allegedly be used to pay for the enormously expensive plan. In their continued efforts to protect their individual states from the ever-increasing interference of the federal government, governors across the nation have fought back against the Obamacare health care exchange mandate
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Responsible healthcare
The Hill
February 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/healthcare/282469-responsible-healthcare
HSAs (Health Savings Accounts) are an extremely good idea, for they place responsibility for an individual's health in that individual's hand. The money that is placed in the HSA stays there and can only be used for the legitimate medical purpose. It can accumulate over a lifetime, and you should be able to transfer your entire account at the time of death. It would teach the owners to shop for healthcare efficiently rather than simply assuming that some third party is going to take care of the expenses.
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North Carolina rejects Medicaid expansion, partnership exchange
The Hill
February 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/282555-north-carolina-rejects-medicaid-expansion-partnership-exchange
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) made clear Tuesday that he doesn't want any part of the coverage expansion under President Obama's signature healthcare law.
McCrory rejected the law's Medicaid expansion and said he doesn't want to work with the federal government to retain some control over his state's insurance exchange. He'll cede that power entirely to the Obama administration.
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No, Obamacare Does Not Lower Health Care Spending
The Foundry
February 12, 2013
http://blog.heritage.org/2013/02/12/no-obamacare-does-not-lower-health-care-spending/
Obamacare supporters tend to give credit to the law where credit is not due. In the latest attempt, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D–WA) tried to link lower projections for Medicare and Medicaid spending to the Affordable Care Act. During today’s hearing on the recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report, Chairman Murray said:
As I was reading through the report, one section really got my attention …which was the discussion of the change in health spending in recent years. In fact, I stopped and underlined one statistic because I found it so surprising. The statistic is that CBO has lowered its estimate of federal spending for Medicare and Medicaid to such a degree that spending for 2020—one year is now $200 billion lower than CBO thought back in 2010, an improvement of 15 percent.
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Health care exchanges may not cover abortion
Virginian Pilot
February 12, 2013
http://hamptonroads.com/2013/02/health-care-exchanges-may-not-cover-abortion
Even as health benefit exchanges bring the promise of more medical coverage for Virginians, access to abortion could become further restricted. Abortion services could be more limited under an amendment being developed by Gov. Bob McDonnell's staff to graft onto legislation aligning Virginia health insurance statutes with the federal health care law. It is likely to mirror one the governor put on a 2011 health benefits exchange bill; with few exceptions, it prohibited abortion coverage on insurance offered through an exchange.
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CMS Guidance Explains Expansion FMAPs, Treatment of Pregnant Women, Basic Health
Bloomberg BNA
February 12, 2013
http://www.bna.com/cms-guidance-explains-n17179872328/
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Feb. 6 clarified how increased federal matching rates would apply to Medicaid expansion populations beginning in 2014, how the Medicaid expansion applies to pregnant women, and when CMS expects to implement the Basic Health Program under the Affordable Care Act. The CMS paper is another in a series of guidance documents written in question-and-answer format released by the agency over the past several months.
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Walker proposes millions to help rural health care
LaCrosse Tribune
February 12, 2013
http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/walker-proposes-millions-to-help-rural-health-care/article_2cc74d86-74d0-11e2-8cdd-0019bb2963f4.html
Wisconsin would spend $23 million to help improve health care in rural and poor urban areas under a proposal Gov. Scott Walker announced Monday. The plan, which Walker outlined at a stop at Mayo Clinic Health System-Eau Claire Monday, includes training and incentives for medical students to pursue residency in rural areas.
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Sebelius: Healthcare 'getting stronger'
The Hill
February 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/282529-sebelius-us-healthcare-getting-stronger-
Innovations in care delivery and President Obama's signature health law are transforming American medicine for the better, the top U.S. health official said Tuesday. In wide-ranging remarks to a medical conference in Washington, D.C., Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius thanked physicians for tolerating the challenges of a changing U.S. healthcare system.
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No new overtures on healthcare
The Hill
February 12, 2013
http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/medicare/282709-obama-offers-no-new-overtures-to-gop-on-healthcare
President Obama made clear in his State of the Union address Tuesday that healthcare costs are the biggest driver of U.S. debt, but offered no new proposals for reining in those costs. "Those of us who care deeply about programs like Medicare must embrace the need for modest reforms – otherwise, our retirement programs will crowd out the investments we need for our children, and jeopardize the promise of a secure retirement for future generations," Obama said.
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Conn. budget feels effects of federal health care
San Francisco Chronicle
February 11, 2013
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Conn-budget-feels-effects-of-federal-healthcare-4268775.php
The federal health care law is providing both challenges and opportunities for Connecticut lawmakers as they spend the coming weeks trying to reach a state budget compromise with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. The two-year, $43.8 billion proposal unveiled by the Democratic governor last week includes millions of dollars in health care spending needed to comply with the Affordable Care Act. But it also relies on millions of dollars in savings that the law generates.
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Oklahoma bills aim to nullify Obama healthcare act
Thompson Reuters
February 11, 2013
http://newsandinsight.thomsonreuters.com/Legal/News/2013/02_-_February/Oklahoma_bills_aim_to_nullify_Obama_healthcare_act/
A member of Oklahoma's House of Representatives has asked the state's attorney general for legal guidance on whether the state legislature can block the Affordable Care Act and other federal laws it considers unconstitutional. Republican Lewis Moore, the chair of the House States' Rights Committee, announced on Friday that he had asked Attorney General Scott Pruitt for a legal opinion on the legislature's ability to nullify the implementation of the federal laws.
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CMS posts group exchange application drafts
Life Health Pro
February 11, 2013
http://www.lifehealthpro.com/2013/02/11/cms-posts-group-exchange-application-drafts
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted drafts of the paper and online applications for workers who may end up shopping for health coverage through the new small group exchanges (CMS-10438). The new application processes could affect employees of small employers that get their health benefits through the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) exchanges.
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Growth in Means-Tested Programs and Tax Credits for Low-Income Households
Congressional Budget Office
February 11, 2013
http://www.cbo.gov/publication/43934
The federal government devotes roughly one-sixth of its spending to 10 major means-tested programs and tax credits, which provide cash payments or assistance in obtaining health care, food, housing, or education to people with relatively low income or few assets. Those programs and credits consist of the following: Medicaid, The low-income subsidy (LIS) for Part D of Medicare (the part of Medicare that provides prescription drug benefits), The refundable portion of the earned income tax credit (EITC), The refundable portion of the child tax credit (CTC),
Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF),
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly called the Food Stamp program), Child nutrition programs, Housing assistance programs, and The Federal Pell Grant Program.
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Government: $4.2 billion recovered in probing health care fraud
Politico
February 11, 2013
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/02/government-42-billion-recovered-in-probing-health-care-fraud-87465.html
The government says it recovered almost $8 for each dollar it spent investigating health care fraud over the past three years, including a record $4.2 billion last year.
The $7.90 average return on investment is the highest in the 16-year history of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Program. Since 1997, the program — a joint effort of the departments of Justice and Health and Human Services — has returned more than $23 billion to the Medicare trust funds.
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Slower Growth of Health Costs Eases Budget Deficit
The New York Times
February 11, 2013
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/us/politics/sharp-slowdown-in-us-health-care-costs.html
A sharp and surprisingly persistent slowdown in the growth of health care costs is helping to narrow the federal deficit, leaving budget experts trying to figure out whether the trend will last and how much the slower growth could help alleviate the country’s long-term fiscal problems.
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Why We Should Celebrate High Healthcare Spending
The Huffington Post
February 11, 2013
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-hodin/health-care-costs-spending_b_2624000.html
Everyone seems to agree that healthcare is failing and that costs are too high. It isn't, and they aren't. Healthcare is keeping us healthier longer than ever before, and the costs are skyrocketing because so too is demand. This is reason to celebrate. We're living longer. We have access to incredible new medicines and treatments. We've become highly informed consumers who can access an immense world of medical information with just a few clicks. Illnesses and diseases that were certain death sentences just a short while ago can now be endured, managed, and beaten.
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The Sunshine Act Is Finally Final
Forbes
February 11, 2013
http://www.forbes.com/sites/aroy/2013/02/11/the-sunshine-act-is-finally-final/
At long last, the federal regulations implementing the “Sunshine Act” are final. On Friday, February 1, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the release of the final rule implementing the Transparency Reports and Reporting of Physician Ownership or Investment Interests section of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), commonly referred to as the “Sunshine Act.”
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Sarasota could lose $145 million without Medicaid expansion
Herald Tribune
February 11, 2013
http://politics.heraldtribune.com/2013/02/11/sarasota-could-lose-145-million-without-medicaid-expansion/
Sarasota could be one of the “hardest-hit” counties in the nation if Florida lawmakers don’t expand Medicaid coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act, Gwen MacKenzie, president and CEO of Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, testified Monday. Addressing the Senate Select Committee on Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, MacKenzie said hospitals and other health-care providers are facing mandatory Medicare cuts under the federal law regardless of whether the state expands Medicaid coverage.
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Indiana State Senator: “I Will Decide What’s Constitutional, Not You”
Tenth Amendment Center
February 11, 2013
http://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2013/02/11/indiana-state-senator-decide-constitutional-not-you/
On Jan. 7, Indiana Sen. Phil Boots introduced SB0230. The proposed legislation finds “the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the federal Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 are inconsistent with the power granted to the federal government in the Constitution of the United States,” and would make enforcement of Obamacare in Indiana a felony. It appears Indiana State Senator David Long remains resolute and will allow a bill that would stop the implementation of the unpopular Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in Indiana to die of neglect, despite strong support for the bill in both legislative chambers and a public outcry in favor of the legislation.
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AHRQ, CMS announces new children’s HER format
News Medical
February 10, 2013
http://www.news-medical.net/news/20130210/AHRQ-CMS-announce-new-childrens-EHR-format.aspx
The benefits of electronic health records (EHRs) may become more widely available to children through an EHR format for children's health care announced today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Growing use of EHRs continues to improve the quality and safety of health care in the United States, but many existing EHR systems are not tailored to capture or process health information about children. The EHR format for children's health care announced today includes recommendations for child-specific data elements such as vaccines and functionality that will enable EHR developers to broaden their products to include modules tailored to children's health.
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In Medicaid, a New Health-Care Fight
The Wall Street Journal
February 10, 2013
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324610504578273780424607740.html
Employers in several states are bracing for higher health-care costs as some governors, worried about the impact on state budgets from the federal overhaul, resist a planned Medicaid expansion. Under the new law, lower-paid workers at companies such as the Nashville, Tenn.-based chain of Captain D's seafood restaurants could qualify for the national expansion of Medicaid set to begin in 2014. Having those employees on Medicaid, the health program for low-income people that is funded with federal and state dollars, would mean the workers get health insurance while the company pays nothing.
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Bishops: Obama Health Care 'Compromise' Not Enough
CBS
February 10, 2013
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2013/February/Bishops-Obama-Health-Care-Compromise-Not-Enough/
The nation's Roman Catholic bishops are still not happy with the Obama administration's compromise plan over birth control coverage, saying it just doesn't go far enough. The bishops, led by New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, want the government to make it clear that faith-affiliated hospitals and other non-profits are religious ministries.
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Kansas’ great hope: Managed care will tame Medicaid costs
MedCity News
February 9, 2013
http://medcitynews.com/2013/02/kansas-great-hope-managed-care-will-tame-medicaid-costs/
She was working as a waitress, without health insurance, when she found out she was pregnant. "I was 17, and you know Medicaid really helped me, because I felt like I had no other way of paying for my care, and paying for all these hospital bills." Her daughter, Kimberly, is four years old now. Aside from a dental surgery, check-ups and preventive care, she doesn’t have many medical needs. And she’s staying healthy.
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State lacks doctors to meet demand of national healthcare law
Los Angeles Times
February 9, 2013
http://www.latimes.com/health/la-me-doctors-20130210,0,1509396.story
As the state moves to expand healthcare coverage to millions of Californians under President Obama's healthcare law, it faces a major obstacle: There aren't enough doctors to treat a crush of newly insured patients. Some lawmakers want to fill the gap by redefining who can provide healthcare. They are working on proposals that would allow physician assistants to treat more patients and nurse practitioners to set up independent practices. Pharmacists and optometrists could act as primary care providers, diagnosing and managing some chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and high-blood pressure.
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Auditors say Ark. Medicaid paid $1.3 million to ineligible recipients
Modern Healthcare
February 9, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130209/INFO/302099892/auditors-say-ark-medicaid-paid-1-3-million-to-ineligible-recipients
Arkansas has paid more than $1.3 million in Medicaid dollars to ineligible recipients since 2009, according to an audit released Friday that a top Republican lawmaker said shows the pressing need to reform the $5 billion healthcare program for the poor and disabled. But the governor and officials from the Arkansas Department of Human Services, which oversees the state's Medicaid program, said the cases reviewed by legislative auditors represented only a small fraction of the roughly 776,000 people in the program.
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State proposals to expand health care coverage to poor deserve support: Opinion
Los Angeles Daily News
February 8, 2013
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_22549992/state-proposals-expand-health-care-coverage-poor-deserve
OUR STATE has an opportunity to lead the nation in paving the way for improved access to health care for underserved and low-income citizens, who represent a disproportionate share of the nation's health care costs because they are unable to afford health insurance. This population also disproportionately faces environmental and nutritional issues, as well as chronic conditions, that themselves exacerbate health problems, creating a vicious cycle of growing health care needs without corresponding health coverage. On Jan. 28, California lawmakers introduced a series of proposals to help implement the Affordable Care Act - President Obama's national health care overhaul - and to expand Medi-Cal, the state's public insurance program for the poor. The proposals were the first part of a special session, requested by Gov. Jerry Brown in his State of State speech on Jan. 24, that was dedicated expressly to implementation of the overhaul.
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CMS establishes new quality reporting system for long term care hospitals
FierceEMR
February 8, 2013
http://www.fierceemr.com/story/cms-establishes-new-quality-reporting-system-long-term-care-hospitals/2013-02-08
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is establishing a new electronic records system for quality reporting by long term care hospitals. The new program, created by the Affordable Care Act, will use this system to compile and eventually publish data measuring the quality of care provided to patients in long term care hospitals, according to a notice published Feb. 6 in the Federal Register. CMS created the system, called the Long Term Care Hospitals' Quality Reporting Program, to house the data sets needed for the program. The data is required to be valid, meaningful, and feasible to collect, and to address symptom management, patient preferences and avoidable adverse events. The first quality measure data set for which the agency plans to compile data is the percentage of patient residents with new or worsened pressure ulcers.
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CMS Issues FY 2011 Medicare RAC Report to Congress
Becker’s Hospital Review
February 8, 2013
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/racs-/-icd-9-/-icd-10/cms-issues-fy-2011-medicare-rac-report-to-congress.html
This week, CMS issued its annual Medicare Recovery Auditor report (pdf) to Congress, confirming that recovery audit contractors collected $797.4 million in overpayments from hospitals and other providers and repaid $141.9 million in underpayments in fiscal year 2011.
The report was the second official Medicare RAC report. CMS concluded that after accounting for RAC contingency fees, appeals and other RAC-related costs, the RAC program saved Medicare more than $488 million in 2011.
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White House warns of sequester's healthcare impact
Modern Healthcare
February 8, 2013
http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20130208/NEWS/302089949/white-house-warns-of-sequesters-healthcare-impact
The Obama administration is warning that budget cuts scheduled for March 1 would hit especially hard in mental healthcare, medical research and the drug approval process. On Friday, the administration released details of some of the nonmilitary cuts under the Budget Control Act of 2011, which required $1.2 trillion in across-the-board spending cuts from most federal programs over 10 years.
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