legislation
FL, IA legislatures pass CON reforms
Picking up on a trend that seems to be mounting nationwide, Florida and Iowa legislators have passed bills that will reform their respective certificate-of-need processes. Fulfilling one of his... Read more...
CO bill would set standards for physician rating, tiering
Colorado's governor is considering a bill that would require the state's health plans to disclose the data and methods they use to create physician tiers. In so doing, the state would follow the... Read more...
Report: Antifraud compliance getting tougher for hospitals
A new report from the Deloitte Forensic Center argues that it's getting increasingly difficult for hospitals to comply with state and federal anti-fraud rules given the surge in new anti-fraud... Read more...
FL may regulate faith-based healthcare coverage
In recent times, a handful of religious organizations have sprung up that offer to pay members' healthcare bills if they pay into a common fund. These groups, which include Samaritan Ministries,... Read more...
Genetic discrimination bill progressing in Congress
After more than a decade of attempts, it looks like Congress might finally pass a bill that would block health insurers from denying coverage to otherwise healthy persons based on their genetic... Read more...
RI reviews med equipment CON process
Apparently concerned that something is lacking in how the process works, a group of Rhode Island lawmakers have set up a commission to study whether state health officials are managing the CON... Read more...
AMA keeps fighting Medicare cuts
As it has for quite some time now, the American Medical Association is continuing to fight for legislation that would halt planned cuts to physician Medicare payments, holding a rally this week on... Read more...
Study: Clinical trials cut mortality rates at hospitals
Mortality rates at 494 hospitals around the country that participated in clinical trials for acute coronary syndrome declined, according to Modern Healthcare. Of 174,062 patients treated, only 3.5... Read more...
Bill may narrow health plan coverage exclusions
Right now, when consumers change health plans, federal law allows the new plan to refuse coverage of pre-existing conditions for 12 months. However, things may end up being different if a new bill... Read more...
Study: Very few child drug trials get outside oversight
A new study suggests that drug trials involving children get shockingly little oversight from outside safety monitoring groups. The study, which reviewed 739 international trials mounted between... Read more...
