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Monday, December 3, 2001
JCARR Approves Rules Governing APNs Prescriptive
Authority
The Joint Commission on Agency Rule
Review today approved a set of rules governing the prescriptive
authority of advance practice nurses (APNs). APNs were granted
prescriptive authority by House Bill 241, sponsored by Rep. Nancy
Hollister (R-Marietta), passed last session.
Once the Ohio Board of Nursing (OBN)
adopts the rules and sets their effective date, APNs can apply for their
required 1-year externships in which they can begin prescribing drugs
and therapeutic devices. OHA anticipates OBN will adopt the rules during
its January meeting and is expecting a Feb. 1 effective date for the
rules. APNs must have completed 36 hours, 45 hours after Oct. 1, 2004,
of planned classroom and clinical study before applying for prescriptive
authority.
OHA is planning to hold a seminar
for member hospitals regarding prescriptive authority of APNs. Stay
tuned for more information about the seminar, which will also address
reimbursement issues. This advancement for APNs is due to support not
only by Hollister but also by Rep. Merle G. Kearns (R-Springfield), the
original sponsor of legislation in the movement toward granting nurses
prescriptive authority. (Jean Scholz, jeans@ohanet.org)
DAILY NEWS CLIPS
For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.
Fewer
foreign patients admitted since Sept. 11
Cleveland
Plain Dealer
Sunday, December 2, 2001
A protracted war in the
Middle East could drain a major income stream from Cleveland's
health-care giants and the local economy, which already has felt the
pinch of tightened international travel conditions.
Hospital
won't ignore poor
Columbus
Dispatch
Saturday, December 1, 2001
When Doctors Hospital
North announced plans to evolve into an urgent-care center, neighbors
and activists for the poor feared the hospital would abandon those who
need it most.
Hospitals
prepare for the worst
Dayton
Business Journal
Monday, December 3, 2001
Are Dayton-area
hospitals prepared to deal with a biological weapon attack in the
region?
Tuesday, December 4,
2001
OIG Issues Ambulance Restocking Safe Harbor
Concerned
about OIG pronouncements questioning ambulance restocking practices, OHA
asked Congress to enact a safe harbor in statute through the Community
Safety Act of 1999 (H.R. 557, 106th Congress), sponsored by Rep. Bob Ney
(R - St. Clairsville). In addition, last year, OHA submitted comments to
the OIG with concerns about the OIG's proposed regulatory safe harbor.
OHA's concerns were addressed in the final rule, which allows hospitals
to distinguish between for profit and non-profit ambulance companies and
eliminates the requirement of governmental emergency medical service
oversight of restocking programs.
The
final rule categorizes restocking arrangements into three types: 1)
general restocking (at no charge or at some charge, whether or not fair
market value); 2) fair market value restocking; and 3)
government-mandated restocking. The OIG imposes four general conditions
for all restocking and adds specific conditions for each type of
arrangement to meet the safe harbor. The OIG emphasizes that compliance
with a safe harbor is voluntary – failure to fit within the
safe harbor does not necessarily mean the arrangement is illegal. Each
situation must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Portions
of Stark II, Phase I Rules Delayed
Monday
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a
one-year delay in the effective date of certain physician self-referral
prohibitions. Phase I of the Stark II regulations, published January 4,
2001, were due to become effective January 4, 2002. The CMS interim
final rule published in the Federal Register delays until January 6,
2003, the portion of the Phase I rules concerning percentage physician
compensation arrangements.
The arrangements at issue take into account a percentage of fluctuating or indeterminate measures -- and therefore are not "set in advance." Many commenters complained that hospitals, physician group practices, academic medical centers and medical foundations frequently use percentage compensation methodologies. These entities would have to restructure or renegotiate thousands of physician contracts to comply with the percentage compensation provisions of the Stark II rules. The interim final rule can be found in the Monday, Dec. 3 Federal Register at frwebgate6.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate.cgi?WAISdocID=476466135224+0+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve. Phase II of the Stark II rules are expected in 2002. (Mary Gallagher, maryg@ohanet.org)
DAILY NEWS CLIPS
For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.
Akron
General makes bid for Edwin Shaw
Akron
Beacon Journal
Tuesday, December 4, 2001
Akron General Medical
Center is offering to pay Summit County $1.35 million to take over its
respected rehabilitation hospital and move it to Akron.
2
more hospitals shut out Clinic doctors
Cleveland
Plain Dealer
Tuesday, December 4, 2001
They're at it again.
Two more hospitals in the University Hospitals Health System have become
the latest to lock out physicians with ties to the Cleveland Clinic,
prompting the Clinic to trumpet patient choice.
Health
Alliance OKs supply-buying deal
Cincinnati
Enquirer
Tuesday, December 4, 2001
The Health Alliance of
Greater Cincinnati, the Tristate's largest health care system, hopes to
save tens of millions per year by hiring a San Francisco-based company
to handle most of its supply purchasing.
Wednesday,
December 5, 2001
Medicare Regulatory Reform Bill Passes House
A
bill intended to help reduce the regulatory burden on hospitals was
voted out of the U.S. House yesterday and is on its way to the Senate.
H.R.
3391, the Medicare Regulatory and Contracting Reform Act, passed the
House unanimously, by a 408-0 vote. The legislation creates specific
time frames for the release of new regulations, prohibits a retroactive
requirement for compliance with new rules, and prohibits sanctions or
recovery of overpayments if providers follow erroneous guidance released
by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). H.R. 3391 would
also allow providers up to three years to repay overpayments in cases of
hardship, or five years in cases of extreme hardship and establishes a
task force to revise the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Action (EMTALA).
The legislation would require the Secretary of HHS to establish a
process for enrollment of providers in Medicare, establish an appeals
process for disenrolled providers and also provides for competitive
bidding procedures for Medicare contractors.
DAILY NEWS CLIPS
For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.
'Survey'
against hospital move
Middletown
Journal
Wednesday, December 5, 2001
According to a group
opposed to Middletown Regional Hospital moving to Warren County - the
group calls itself "Keep Out" - results of a
"survey" are clear.
Council
allocates funds for construction of new health-care center
Columbus
Daily Reporter
Wednesday, December 5, 2001
Columbus City Council
members unanimously approved an ordinance this week to construct a new
health-care center on the city's east side.
Thursday, December 6, 2001
Comments Requested
on 7th Statement of Work Contract
The
Office of Clinical Standards and Quality at the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services (CMS) is requesting comments on the draft 7th
Statement of Work for the next Quality Improvement Organization,
formerly Peer Review Organization, contract cycle. The draft is
available online at www.hcfa.gov/quality/5b.htm. Please note the
short turn-around time for comments, which are due by Dec. 19. Comments
should be submitted to CMS by e-mail at 7sowcom@cms.hhs.gov. Attachments
to the draft are currently under development and are not yet available
for review or comment.
The
Statement of Work emphasizes public reporting of performance measures
for selected provider types: community-based quality improvement
projects with hospitals, managed care plans, physician offices, home
health agencies, and nursing homes; and beneficiary protection
activities.
OPPS
Rule Part Two Released
The
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Nov. 30 released the
second part of the final rule on the 2002 Medicare outpatient
prospective payment system (OPPS). The first portion of the rule, issued
Nov. 2, pertains to Medicare payments to hospitals for
“pass-through” devices, drugs and biological products. The second
part of the rule covers specific ambulatory payment classification (APC)
payment rates.
Both
parts of the rule go into effect Jan. 1, but the delay in the release of
the rule, combined with an unusually large number of changes to computer
software required to update the payment system, will force CMS to delay
processing outpatient hospital Medicare bills with services dates on and
after Jan. 1, 2002, for at least three months. While at press time final
word from CMS had not yet been received, OHA anticipates CMS will order
contractors to hold post-Jan. 1 bills until further notice, and, upon
request, to pay hospitals a monthly advance payment equal to 90 percent
of the average monthly receipt for the last quarter of 2001. The first
advance payment can be expected at the end of January. Once the 2002
payment system is up and running, CMS will order contractors to pay 2002
outpatient Medicare bills on a first-received basis.
Additional
detail, including an analysis of the rule, is included in OHA Bulletin
01-040, mailed this week and available to members online at www.ohanet.org/bulletinsview.asp.
(Charles Cataline, charlesc@ohanet.org)
DAILY NEWS CLIPS
For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.
Money
no cure for Medicare HMOs, report says
Cleveland
Plain Dealer
Thursday, December 6, 2001
A billion dollars might
sound like a lot of money, but a federal report says it didn't make much
of a difference to Medicare HMO plans.
Hospital
chief: 'We're moving'
Middletown
Journal
Thursday, December 6, 2001
Middletown Regional
Hospital Chief Executive Officer Doug McNeill weathered critical
questions Wednesday from members of Concerned Armco/AK Steel Retired
Employees about the hospital's planned move to Warren County.
Hospital
gets grant for lab
New
Philadelphia Times-Reporter
Thursday, December 6, 2001
DENNISON — Twin City
Hospital’s Laboratory Services Department has received a $7,000 grant
from the newly formed Tuscarawas County Community Foundation. The funds
will be used to purchase a Class II Laminar Flow Biological Safety
Cabinet for the microbiology department of the lab.
Friday, December 7, 2001
Medical Malpractice Insurance Market Continues to
Harden
The
Ohio State Medical Association (OSMA) is urging Gov. Bob Taft to appoint
a special task force to study the hardening of the medical malpractice
insurance market in Ohio. OSMA told the governor the lack of
availability and affordability of coverage for physicians could lead to
limitations in access to care and increases in overall health care
costs.
The
medical malpractice insurance market has been growing tighter in Ohio
and across the nation. Both rising jury awards, extensive underwriting
growth and underpricing during the 1990s are contributing factors.
According to the International Risk Management Institute, in 1999 for
every $1 medical malpractice insurers were receiving as premium, they
paid out $1.26 in losses and expenses. As a result, insurers nationwide
have been hiking their rates. The situation is worse for physicians, who
are seeing their premiums rise at higher rates than hospitals.
In
some markets, such as eastern Pennsylvania, South Florida and Texas,
insurers are pulling out altogether and in some cases insurers are
experiencing dire financial conditions. Recently companies such as
Frontier and Reliance have been liquidated or become otherwise inactive,
and in August, PHICO was placed under state rehabilitation in
Pennsylvania.
OHA
is actively following the issue, supports OSMA’s request of the
governor, and has been advocating passage of legislation to alleviate
the situation, including bills on peer review protections and joint and
several liability. An educational program is being planned for late
January. Watch for more details to come. (Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)
Lab Billing Investigations Conclude in
Ohio
The hospital lab billing investigation in Ohio has come to a
close. The latest and final batch of settlements were announced this
week by Auditor of State Jim Petro. The settlements with 75 hospitals in
the Southern District of Ohio total $22 million.
The
federal government alleged hospitals were overbilling Medicare and
Medicaid because of the way bills for outpatient lab tests were
presented to the government. According to the investigation, hospitals
billed separately for tests the government said should have been
grouped. Since the investigation began in 1996, the billing rules for
outpatient lab tests have been changed.
As
a result of a settlement reached in a lawsuit challenging the lab
investigations filed by OHA and the American Hospital Association (AHA)
against former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala,
Ohio hospitals are longer be required to file detailed annual compliance
reports with the Office of Inspector General in the Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS). The compliance reports had been part of the
agreements hospitals had been required to sign with the federal
government.
The
billing investigation involved nearly every hospital in Ohio. The
project resulted in settlements totaling $46.8 million with 185
hospitals in Ohio. The investigation has spread to other parts of the
country where it is still ongoing. (Mary Gallagher, maryg@ohanet.org)
DAILY NEWS CLIPS
For your daily health care news digest, go to the Hannah News Service's StateHealthClips.com.
Health
officials- Who will pay meningitis medicine bill?
Sandusky
Register
Friday, December 7, 2001
Two weeks after
hundreds of students and employees of Woodlands Elementary School in
Huron were given antibiotics to prevent or treat possible meningitis
exposure, the question arises about who will pay for the medicine.
Grant
given to Union Hospital
New
Philadelphia Times-Reporter
Friday, December 7, 2001
The project to expand
Union Hospital at Dover has received financial support through a $25,000
grant from the Tuscarawas County Community Foundation.
From
employee to volunteer, local woman has been with the hospital since 1939
Alliance
Review
Friday, December 7, 2001
Martha Hundt received
recognition for the more than 500 hours she had served as a hospital
volunteer auxiliary Pink Lady in recent years. But Hundt can recall past
times as a hospital employee when life at Alliance Community Hospital
was much different.