On Friday, Congressional lawmakers approved an extension to the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012,1 which contains a “doc fix” preventing a 27.4% cut in Medicare physician payments that was set to begin on March 1, 2012.
Continue Reading Lawmakers Approve the “Doc Fix” Freezing
Medicare & Reimbursement
Congress Postpones SGR 27% Cut For 10 Months
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
Congress approves measure averting 27 percent physician cut through 2012
A House-Senate Conference Committee tasked with identifying a compromise to avoid the pending 27.4 percent Medicare physician payment cut reached a 10-month deal that would maintain current physician payment rates through the end of the year. The measure was approved this afternoon by both…
HHS Announces Intent to Delay ICD-10 Compliance Date
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Compliance, Medicare & Reimbursement
HHS announces intent to delay ICD-10 compliance date
As part of President Obama’s commitment to reducing regulatory burden, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen G. Sebelius today announced that HHS will initiate a process to postpone the date by which certain health care entities have to comply with International Classification of Diseases, 10th…
Another Temporary Fix For Medicare Physician Fee Schedule SGR Problem
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
Congress will probably slap another temporary fix on the looming Medicare Physician Fee Schedule SGR Cuts by postponing the cuts again through the end of the calendar year, and past the elections as well. There will be no Monday morning political quarterbacks wishing they had punted – because this team, as has every team for…
Medcare Physican Fee Schedule SGR Cut Punted For 2 Months
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
Medicare pay cut averted; Congress OKs
two-month patch
Physicians got a brief reprieve from a 27 percent Medicare pay cut Friday when the U.S. House of Representatives reached agreement with the Senate on a two-month extension of important policies that expire on Jan. 1.
The U.S. Senate last week voted to extend current Medicare …
AMA ALERT-Congress Fails to Avert Medicare Payment Cut
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
The U.S. House of Representatives today rejected a Senate bill that would have averted a 27.4 percent Medicare physician payment cut scheduled for Jan. 1 and extended an expiring payroll tax reduction and unemployment insurance benefits. The net result was to leave 2012 Medicare payment rates in limbo.
Continue Reading AMA ALERT-Congress Fails to Avert Medicare Payment Cut
Are ACOs the Answer?
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
It may seem contradictory that Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) are championed as the new answer to manage more efficiently (i.e. improve quality and reduce costs) when the most popular form of ACOs, i.e. the Medicare Shared Savings Program, established in 2010 as a component of the Patient Protection and Accountable Care Act has yet to…
AMA Reports; Supercommittee Stalemate Leaves SGR 27.5 Physician Fee Schedule Decrease Intact
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
Supercommittee failure leaves 27 percent Medicare payment cut in place With the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction failing to reach agreement on a deficit-reduction proposal, physicians still face a 27 percent cut in Medicare physician payments scheduled to take effect Jan. 1. Congress has missed an opportunity to address the nation’s fiscal problems, stabilize…
CMS Releases 2012 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule With 27.4% Decrease
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
CMS ANNOUNCES POLICY, PAYMENT RATE CHANGES FOR THE PHYSICIAN FEE SCHEDULE IN 2012
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today issued a final rule with comment period that updates payment policies and rates for physicians and nonphysician practitioners (NPPs) for services paid under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) in calendar year (CY)
…
https://www.medlawblog.com/2011/11/articles/medicare-reimbursement/845/
By Michael Cassidy on
Posted in Medicare & Reimbursement
HHS has issued its 2012 OIG Work Plan. Following are some particular areas of concern for physicians:
Physician-Owned Distributors of Spinal Implants: OIG will determine the extent to which physician-owned distributors (PODs) provide spinal implants purchased by hospitals and whether PODs are associated with high use of spinal implants. The Work Plan notes that Congress has…