Medicaid providers in California won a legal challenge over program cuts in the case “Maxwell-Jolly v. Independent Living Center of Southern California.” McKnight’s Long Term Care News reports that “The U.S. Supreme Court has let stand a federal appeals court ruling that says California’s Medicaid providers have a right to challenge state cuts to Medi-Cal provider […]

The American Hospital Association released a statement that it is “deeply disappointed and concerned” that the Obama administration has proposed cuts of more than $220 billion to hospitals, in addition to the $41 billion in cuts to Medicare already proposed. Click title to read more… Rich Umbdenstock, AHA’s president and CEO, singled out cuts to […]

Unless hospitals and physicians are held accountable for the cost, quality, and utilization benchmarks achieved by their best-performing peers, healthcare costs won’t be contained, states a white paper by Health CEOs for Health Reform (HC4HR), a coalition of healthcare leaders whose mission is a “willingness to transform their business models to create a more sustainable […]

Fifty-three physicians, healthcare executives, and Medicare beneficiaries were arrested Wednesday in New York City, Miami, and Detroit by the newly expanded federal Medicare Fraud Strike Force. They were charged with submitting more than $50 million in Medicare claims related to unnecessary or fraudulent procedures. Click title to read more… In a joint press conference in […]

Small medical practices provide nearly 75% all ambulatory care in the United States, yet many lack the resources to improve the quality of care delivered or install electronic health records to serve an increasingly diverse patient mix, according to a report released today by the National Committee for Quality Assurance. Click title to read more… […]

The border town of McAllen, Texas wasn’t on the tip of anybody’s tongue before this month. But a few weeks ago, an article in The New Yorker offered it up as exhibit A of all that is wrong with the country’s healthcare system, the ground zero of medicine run amok. Click title to read more… […]

With the RAC demonstration ended, one of the best ways to prepare for a RAC audit comes in learning from survivors. Elizabeth Lamkin, CEO of Hilton Head Regional Hospital in South Carolina, offered key guidance to HFMA conference attendees in how to ready their organizations for a RAC attack. As you can imagine, the discussion […]

On June 15, 2009, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released its June 2009 Report to Congress: Improving Incentives in the Medicare Program (Report). In the Report, MedPAC focuses on how certain incentives could be changed to strengthen the Medicare program and promote quality care for its beneficiaries. In brief, MedPAC addresses: Click title to […]

Health IT Incentives and Support for Adoption. The Recovery Act authorizes bonus payments for eligible professionals and hospitals participating in Medicare or Medicaid if they become meaningful users of certified EHRs. These bonus payments will help lessen the financial burden for many healthcare providers to adopt this technology. Click title to read more…     […]