Sunday, June 08, 2008

Weekend update / Miscellany

  • Modern Healthcare Online reports that Sen. Max Baucus (D Mont), the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, has released his "Medicare reform" bill that would retain the current 0.5% increase in doctor reimbursement from Medicare in 2008 and allow a 1.1% increase in 2009. This is higher than the increase that Sen. Baucus initially proposed. Absent the enactment of this legislation, a 10.6% reduction in doctor reimbursement from Medicare will take effect on July 1, 2008. What's more unless this legislation is enacted by June 16, Medicare will be required to implement the change retroactively according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
  • The New York Times reports today on a Capitol Hill controversy over Medicare reimbursement of doctor owned or specialty hospitals.
  • Today's Washington Post includes a Jane Bryant Quinn column on a health care reform proposal offered by the ERISA Industry Committee. Meanwhile, AHIP, the health insurance carrier's trade association, offered its own reform proposal recently.

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