legislators

Medical ethicists are shaking their heads over a new South Carolina bill which would let inmates leave prison six months early if they donate a kidney or bone marrow. The bill, which was just approved by the state Senate's Corrections and Penology Subcommittee, would let the state's Department of Corrections decide which inmates were allowed to donate. The costs for the donation, as well as any prison guard overtime needed to maintain the peace, would be paid for by the organ recipient …

A federal bill which would ban genetic discrimination by insurers is making significant progress in Congress, a decade after the issue first drew the attention of legislators. The bill's prospects are stronger than they have been in many years, as President Bush has indicated that he will sign such a measure. This comes despite the opposition of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other groups, which argue that the measure would encourage employees to file genetic discrimination suits. …

According to the LA Times, some California insurance companies are refusing to sell individual coverage to people based solely on their jobs. "Entire categories of workers--including roofers, pro athletes, dockworkers, migrant workers and firefighters--are turned down for insurance even if they are in good health and can afford coverage, according to the confidential underwriting guidelines of four health plans," reports the Times. Though the practice is legal under …

Many healthcare policy wonks are speculating that 2007 will be a big year for health IT legislation. Observers say that while some health IT measures got stuck on the Hill in 2006, in the coming year legislators are likely to see health IT as a priority. With the private sector signaling that it's more than ready for health IT change, supporting data-driven initiatives such as PHRs, EMRs and pay-for-performance schemes, legislators …

The drumbeat is getting louder: Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, San Francisco (and possibly California) took action on the issue of covering the uninsured this year, gaining traction for reforms that might have been shot down with little comment a few years ago. Among the highest-profile changes is taking place in Massachusetts, where legislators are looking at a …

Now that the battle over the 5 percent Medicare fee cut is finished, evidence continues to filter in that physicians aren't so thrilled with the compromise that spared them the cut. When the House Ways and Means Committee reached out to physician groups to ask for letters of support, only a few agreed to do so. In particular, the American Medical Association conspicuously declined to issue the letter of support, and what's more, rejected an offer from Ways and Means Chairman …

A new report by the American Hospital Association says that uncompensated care at community hospitals held steady in 2005 at 5.6 percent of expenses, rather than continuing to climb as it had in past year. The total cost of uncompensated care, including free or discounted services and bad debt, climbed 7.1 percent to $28.8 billion last year. This was boosted by growing Medicare and Medicaid shortfalls, which jumped 14.5 percent to $25.3 billion.

The hospitals had previously posted …

In response to the theft of data from the VA system, legislators have introduced several new bills that would impose penalties designed to discourage identity theft. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI) introduced legislation last week that would make improperly "viewing, using, downloading or removing" personal data, including health data, from a federal database a crime. Last week, Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA), introduced a bill that requires federal officials to notify victims of any "unauthorized …

A powerful bipartisan group of legislators in Washington has introduced legislation that would waive penalties for late sign ups for Medicare Part D. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Max Baucus (D-MT) introduced a bill which would waive the current penalty. Grassley predicts that the legislation will pass by a unanimous vote in the Senate. Observers are divided over how well the legislation would do in the House, should it move forward. The White House showed signs that it may be …

Legislators in Tallahassee will take up a bill that would impose strict limits on the number of offices that Florida physicians can operate. The proposed legislation, which moved forward through committee yesterday, would cap the number of satellite offices that primary care physicians can operate at four for general practitioners and two for specialists. The law was prompted by reports that some doctors were opening offices and leaving them largely in the hands of nurse practitioners and …