Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. Two new reports from the Congressional Budget Office outline “more than a few fiscal challenges for lawmakers hoping to write legislation” to overhaul the U.S. health care system, CQ Today reports. According to CBO, “serious concerns exist about the efficiency of the health care system, but no simple solutions are […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. CMS on Thursday will post online the quality ratings of 16,000 individual nursing homes across the U.S. based on a one- to five-star scale, USA Today reports (Appleby et al., USA Today, 12/18). The ratings are based on data from state inspections, reports on staffing and quality measures. The homes […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chair Pete Stark (D-Calif.) on Wednesday said a vote on health care overhaul legislation likely would not occur during the first 100 days of the new Congress and could be put off until late 2009 or 2010, The Hill reports. Congress has several smaller […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society on Wednesday released a set of policy recommendations for the incoming Obama administration and the 111th Congress that outline five priorities to promote wider use of health information technology and stimulate the economy, CQ HealthBeat reports…  Click title to read more… Under the […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. The incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama plans on “applying some of the lessons learned” from President Clinton’s health care reform efforts in the 1990s, which “means … moving fast, seizing momentum and not letting it go,” AP/Kansas City Star reports… Click title to read more… According to the AP/Star, […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. Aides to President-elect Barack Obama have told lawmakers that a two-year economic stimulus package they plan to consider in January 2009 could cost as much as $850 billion, rather than the $600 billion currently under consideration, congressional officials said on Wednesday, the AP/Contra Costa Times reports (AP/Contra Costa Times, 12/17)… […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 18, 2008. Utah lawmakers on Tuesday during the final meeting of the Legislature’s Health System Reform Task Force unveiled a plan to overhaul the state’s health insurance market, the Salt Lake Tribune reports…  Click title to read more… The proposal, the first part of a 10-year health reform plan, would expand the […]

HFMA News – Dec. 18, 2008. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) has released a report on key issues related to adverse events in hospitals. These adverse events include the ‘never events,’ such as surgery on the wrong patient, which the National Quality Forum has said should never […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 17, 2008. The New Jersey Senate on Monday approved legislation that would require physicians at outpatient surgery centers to inform patients about how their services will be billed and whether the doctors have any financial interests in a referral to such centers, the Bergen Record reports. Under the bill — sponsored by […]