April 2019

On April 4, 2019, CMS issued the final Medicare Advantage Rule for calendar year 2020, announcing it will allow Medicare Advantage carriers to significantly increase the range of telehealth services beyond traditional Medicare Part B covered services, stipulating only that, if a service is to be covered as a telehealth service, it must also be

The Patient Test Result Information Act was effective December 23, 2018.

The Act requires entities performing diagnostic imaging services, defined to include any medical imaging test intended to diagnose the presence or absence of a disease, to provide notice of the results to patients.  The operative language states:

“When, in the judgment of the entity

Although there have been a number of issues raised by the Pennsylvania Attorney General in the UPMC/Highmark situation, including UPMC’s status as a charitable institution, the primary issue in the Attorney General’s lawsuit was a request to extend the June 30, 2019 termination date for the UPMC-Highmark Consent Decrees. The Commonwealth Court declined to extend