Articles and Blogs

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) published important payment adjustment information this week for health care providers participating in the Medicare Electronic Health Records Incentive Program (“Incentive Program”). Eligible Professionals (“EPs”) participating in the Incentive Program may be subject to payment adjustments beginning January 1, 2015. CMS will determine the payment adjustment based on meaningful use data submitted prior to…Read More

The word on the street is that OFCCP will mail its next round of Corporate Scheduling Announcement Letters (“CSALs”) to unlucky federal contractors this week.  This is not a letter you want to receive, as it means your company has been targeted for an affirmative action compliance review.   

Support Grows for Delaying 2-Midnight Rule A bill that would further delay enforcement of CMS’s 2-midnight rule has garnered the support of almost 70 members of the House of Representatives. The measure, introduced by Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-PA), would extend the current enforcement delay an additional six months to October 31, 2014 and implement a new…Read More

On June 1, 2014, Indiana will change the way Indiana residents obtain Medicaid coverage in the age, blind or disabled categories.  Currently, when Indiana residents apply for Medicaid coverage, they are subject to state-specific restrictive criteria.   After June 1, 2014, Indiana residents will automatically be enrolled in Medicaid if the Federal Social Security Administration determines…Read More

New TJC Standards Addressing Patient Flow and Boarding Citing a recent American College of Emergency Physicians state-by-state report card that gave the nation as a whole a “D+” in emergency department care, Modern Healthcare proclaimed the worsening state of the “emergency-care environment” a consequence of “increased demand and shrinking resources.”1  The decline in emergency department care is…Read More

Executive Summary Large scale data breaches have been in the media spotlight lately.  In addition to federal requirements for protecting patient information, health care providers should familiarize themselves and stay up to date with state data breach requirements.  The reporting process for data breaches of personal information for Indiana residents to the Indiana Attorney General…Read More

The OIG is soliciting proposals and recommendations for additional Anti-Kickback Statute, Safe Harbors and OIG Special Fraud Alerts.1  The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act requires an annual notice period to solicit these comments in order to identify and protect non-abusive arrangements from the Anti-Kickback Statute.

HFMA Endorses Stark Administration Simplification Act On January 24, the Healthcare Financial Management Association (“HFMA”) officially endorsed the Stark Administrative Simplification Act (H.R. 3776). The bill is the result of a lobbying effort by the Hall Render Stark Law Correction Coalition (“SLCC”). An organization of hospital and health systems from across the country, the SLCC seeks to…Read More

Not So Quick On January 22, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) published in Federal Registerthe  its official rescission of the so-called “Quickie Election Rule” that would have greatly speeded up union elections in the private sector.  The rescission of the rule restores the NLRB’s former election processes and procedures.  In practical terms, the…Read More

“Sicker than a Dog” Under the ADA, an employer is required to “reasonably accommodate” a “qualified individual with a disability.”  In this recent case, the court had occasion to consider whether an open-ended request for leave was “reasonable” when it was made by an employee who claimed to be “sicker than a dog” and was…Read More