gao report news from FierceHealthcare
News
GAO finds gaps in equpment-supplier oversight
A series of tests conducted on behalf of the Government Accountability Office has found significant weaknesses in CMS's medical-equipment supplier screening process. In a new report, the agency... Read more...
Grassley to introduce imaging self-referral bill
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) plans to introduce a bill that he says would cast a spotlight on physicians' financial incentives to order imaging services. The bill, which will be called the Medicare... Read more...
GAO: HHS agencies need to collaborate to fight HAIs
If they're to make any real progress in fighting hospital-associated infections, HHS agencies will need to work together more closely, according to the Government Accountability Office. GAO director... Read more...
MD groups struggle with Medicare incentive goals
It looks like the initial stages of a new CMS demonstration project have turned out to be something of a disappointment. In April 2005, CMS began offering annual bonuses to 10 physician groups if... Read more...
Report:Number of U.S. primary care MDs falls
A new study underscores the point that the number of U.S. doctors specializing in primary care is falling, though stats suggest that the gap is being covered by doctors who move here from other... Read more...
GAO: Thousands of Medicaid providers haven't paid taxes
A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concludes that thousands of healthcare providers who haven't paid federal taxes are still collecting millions from Medicaid. The GAO,... Read more...
GAO: Medicare HMOs shouldn't have kept money
A new audit by the Government Accountability Office has found that private health plans contracting with Medicare are keeping money which they're supposed to either return to the government or pass... Read more...
GAO says U.S. can't afford more healthcare
While it's all well and good to expand health coverage to more uninsured Americans, doing so would impose an untenable burden on the federal budget, according to a top government official. Government Accountability Office head David Walker says that existing federal government commitments such as Social Security and Medicare are already breaking the federal bank. While some have suggested that …
... Read more...MDs often prescribe advertised drugs
A new survey published in Consumer Reports magazine, 78 percent of the physicians surveyed say their patients have asked for drugs advertised on TV. More importantly, however, is the fact that 67 percent admit to prescribing the drug after patients ask for it. The report underscores the impact direct-to-consumer advertising can have on both patients and physicians. Consumer Reports urges patients to ignore the ads. Some doctors think that DTC drug advertising does have some …
... Read more...ALSO NOTED: Former HealthSouth CFO gets prison sentence; GA in need of more docs; and much more...
> UnitedHealthcare and Froedtert & Community Health are trying to iron out an ongoing contract dispute. Report
> Authorities have arrested three Brooklyn, NY men--two brothers and an employee--for defrauding Medicaid of millions of dollars. One brother was a doctor, the other a pharmacy owner and the third man a pharmacy employee. The three allegedly billed Medicaid for …
... Read more...