proposal

Not everybody is impressed with the CMS plan to beta test VistA-Office, the open-source electronic medical record originally developed at the Veteran's Administration. Open source supporters think the limited beta, which sees the software distributed to an extremely small pool of physicians, is an attempt to bury the program. FierceHealthcare reader Jordan Glogau, CTO of Nanuet, New York-based Preferred Health Resources, writes to complain that the proposal doesn't sound very serious to him: "Only 10 offices will be involved in the project, and you will have to be a 'qualified' vendor to participate!"

The powerful American Association of Retired People is expected to officially take a side this week or next in the battle in California over two competing ballot measures, each of which promises to make prescription drugs more affordable for consumers. Many analysts expect the group to back Proposition 78, the drug industry's proposal. Others think AARP could align itself with the consumer group-backed Proposition 79, generally thought of as tougher on the industry in order to send a …

Under pressure from Democrats, patient advocates and public hospitals, California will not go ahead with a planned shift of thousands of elderly, blind and disabled Medi-Cal recipients to managed care plans. The failure to meet the deadline will cost the state $98 million in federal funds. California had agreed to the proposal to move patients into the private plan as part of a compromise with the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. California's decision is likely to be viewed as …

The drug industry released new guidelines which respond to recent criticism of its advertising practices. The proposal would impose a waiting period before companies can advertise new drugs, an idea modeled after the 12-month self-imposed moratorium on new ads recently announced by Bristol Meyers Squibb. The industry guidelines do not specify how long companies must wait before airing ads, however. Also included are new restrictions on content and the hours at which some ads can be shown. …

There were signs of progress in the fight to trim Medicaid spending as the nation's governors met in Des Moines, Iowa, over the weekend to talk about healthcare and education at the National Governor's Association meeting. A key focus of the talks is reducing Medicaid spending, which this year surpassed education as the single largest item on state budgets. The Medicaid issue has been a contentious one in Washington in recent months, with lawmakers unable to agree on just what steps are …

The American Medical Association is considering supporting a new idea which could radically change the way in which the healthcare industry operates. Officials want legislation that would prevent corporations or hospitals from directly hiring doctors. The AMA board of trustees endorsed the proposal this week. The argument is that corporations influence physician independence, potentially impacting patient care. The logistical problems any such requirement would cause for hospitals and …

There was controversy after it was revealed that officials in Georgia are working on a compromise deal which would give the state more flexibility in how it spends its Medicaid funds. Under the proposed plan, residents participating in the state's Medicaid program would pay more for prescription drugs. They would also be required to pay co-pays for the first time. Governor Sonny Perdue's proposal came as a shock to many local observers who said the details of the plan had been negotiated …