Posted on September 5, 2012
Published on August 23, 2012
On August 23, 2012, CMS released the final rule governing Stage 2 of the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs. These programs were authorized by the HITECH Act, part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The final rule establishes the Stage 2 criteria that eligible professionals and eligible hospitals must meet in order to participate in and receive incentives through the EHR Incentive Programs.
Published on August 22, 2012
Author: Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) announced the Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative as a way to assist primary care providers in delivering higher quality, patient-centered, coordinated care.
Published on July 26, 2012
Author: CMS
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General Eric Holder announced a new initiative to prevent health care fraud. This new arrangement allows state officials to partner with private insurance organizations and other health care anti-fraud groups.
Posted on August 1, 2012
URL:
http://www.healthinfolaw.org/article/state-health-insurance-exchange-laws-first-generation
Published on August 25, 2012
Author: Sara Rosenbaum, J.D., Nancy Lopez, J.D., M.P.H., Taylor Burke, J.D., L.L.M., and Mark Dorley, M.P.H.
Publication: The Commonwealth Fund
This issue brief examines the efforts by 13 states and the District of Columbia to establish a health insurance exchange as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as of May, 2012.
Published on July 30, 2012
Publication: Federal Register
This proposed rule would update the payment rates under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for Part B drugs and other Part B services based on national uniform relative value units (RVUs). The rule also proposes implementing the Affordable Care Act by requiring a face to face encounter as a condition of payment for durable medical equipment(DME) items.
Published on July 30, 2012
Publication: Federal Register
This proposed rule includes an update to the payment rates and policies for Medicare beneficiaries in hospital outpatient departments and ambulatory surgery centers. The rule also makes changes to the electronic health record incentive program.
Published on July 17, 2012
Author: Eric Jamoom, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.S.; Paul Beatty, Ph.D.; Anita Bercovitz, Ph.D., M.P.H.; et al
Publication: The Centers for Disease Control - National Center for Health Statistics
This report examines the CDC's survey results on physicians' pattern and use of electronic health records from 2011. The study notes that 55% of all physicians report having some sort of electronic health record system, with a majority of those physicians reporting satisfaction with their EHR systems.
Published on July 13, 2012
Publication: Federal Register
This proposed rule updates payment rates under the Home Health Prospective Payment System, which includes the 60 day episode rate, national per visit rate, low utilization payment rate, and outlier payments under the Medicare home health program. In addition, the proposed rule would allow for unannounced surveys of home health agencies and allow for the imposition of sanctions if the home health agencies are not in compliance with federal regulations. The rule also proposes requirements for hospice quality data reporting, pursuant to the changes made to the Social Security Act by the Affordable Care Act. The rule notes that the purpose of the collection of quality data is to improve health through the widespread dissemination and use of performance information. The rule would allow the Secretary to penalize a hospice that does not comply with the quality reporting requirements.
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