> CMS has a letter to state Medicaid directors offering guidance on payment policies related to conditions on the National Quality Forum's (NQF) list of serious reportable events. The letter encourages states to coordinate their Medicaid payment policies with the existing Medicare hospital-acquired condition (HAC) payment policy to make sure they don't end up paying for them as secondary payer. Article
> As part of a planned $1 billion reduction, New York Gov. David Paterson is asking for $506 million in Medicaid cuts from his state's budget. This would lead to a 7 percent Medicaid rate cut for hospitals for six months of 2008, and a 3.5 percent cut for 2009. Article
> Five Star Quality Care has filed a lawsuit against Sunrise Senior Living, arguing that Sunrise overcharged by as much as $10 million for insurance while managing 31 of Five Star's senior living communities. Article
> A new study concludes that while the uninsured population in the United States is still dominated by native-born Americans, the percentage of uninsured immigrants is growing, accounting for about 55 percent of the growth over a 12-year period ending in 2006. Article
And Finally... I wouldn't be caught dead bathing where Timothy Tackett did...but hey, at least he had fun. Article