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Monday, July 7, 2003
OHA Mini Residency Program Just Around the Corner
OHA is in the process of kicking off the summer Mini-Residency Program. The goal of the program is to help member hospitals improve their relationships with their state senators or representatives and to better educate members of the legislature on how their local hospitals operate, what services they provide and the pertinent issues facing hospitals across the state.

The program typically lasts three hours and consists of a hospital tour, a discussion on pertinent issues among the legislator and senior management, and a lunch with hospital personnel, board members and community leaders.

If your hospital is interested in participating in the Mini-Residency Program this year, contact Jeff Klingler at jeffk@ohanet.org or 614.221.7614 or visit www.ohanet.org/advocacy/state/resources/residency.htm.

Tuesday, July 8, 2003
CMS Offers Pilot Smoking Cessation Program
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Ohio Hospital Association are working to inform Medicare patients about the Medicare Stop Smoking Program, which will offer reimbursement for different smoking cessation treatments to Ohio beneficiaries. A 12-month pilot, the program will compare the impact of reimbursement for several smoking cessation benefits.

The program is available to smokers 65 years or older who have Medicare Part B coverage and receive benefits through Medicare fee-for-service. Ohio will be divided into four regions with beneficiaries in each region receiving a different service. The services include: provider counseling reimbursement, provider counseling reimbursement and prescription with pharmacotherapy coverage, telephone counseling and pharmacotherapy coverage and usual care (informational materials).

Physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists who deliver primary care will be eligible for Medicare reimbursement. To receive reimbursement, claims must be submitted to TrailBlazer Health Enterprises. For more information on billing visit www.qualidigm.org.mssp. (Charles Cataline, charlesc@ohanet.org)

Hospitals Helping Safe Havens Program
Twenty newborn babies have been safely surrendered since Ohio’s Save Havens Program was enacted in April 2001, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS).

Ohio hospitals have an important role in the success of the program, which allows parents to voluntarily deliver a baby within 72 hours of birth to a hospital or law-enforcement agency without facing child-desertion charges. After a baby is delivered to the appropriate hospital employee, the hospital is required to take measures to protect the baby’s health and notify the local children’s services agency that the child has been taken into possession. Hospitals are also required to make available to parents written materials developed by ODJFS for use by hospitals explaining the program and also allowing for collection of basic medical information on the child. Those materials are available on the ODJFS Web site at www.state.oh.us/scripts/odjfs/forms/pdf/01672.pdf.

Counties in which infants have been voluntarily surrendered include Franklin with seven baby drop-offs, Hamilton with four, and Butler, Guernsey, Hardin, Knox, Lorain, Lucas, Muskingum, Richland and Summit with one.

For more information on the program, see OHA Bulletin 02-002 at www.ohanet.org/bulletins/2002/02-002.htm, OHA Bulletin 01-005 at www.ohanet.org/bulletins/2001/01-005.htm, or the ODJFS Save Havens Web site at www.state.oh.us/odjfs/safehavens/. (Jeff Klingler, jeffk@ohanet.org)

Wednesday, July 9, 2003
AHA Calls for Clarity on HIPAA Standards
In a recent letter to U.S. House and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tommy Thompson, the American Hospital Association (AHA) is urging the department to create a system-wide implementation plan to prevent delays in claims processing and payment when the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s (HIPAA) electronic transactions and code set standards take effect Oct. 16.

AHA is not calling for a delay in the implementation date, but rather for less stringent or good faith enforcement for covered entities not able to achieve full compliance by that date due to circumstances beyond their control. Repercussions from a faulty implementation could include pre-compliance testing logjams in September and October, noncompliance with the Oct. 16 deadline, or significantly delayed payments to providers from payers not equipped to deal with a substantial number of noncompliant electronic claims. For instance, in June Aetna announced that effective Sept. 15, providers will be required to send all Aetna claims electronically. To do so, providers will need to use the new HIPAA standards.

AHA also asked HHS to intensify its education activities to providers, payers and other groups on the implementation. AHA’s letter can be viewed at www.aha.org by clicking “HIPAA” under Key Issues, then “What’s New.”(Charles Cataline, charlesc@ohanet.org)

Study Supports Med Mal Caps
As the U.S. Senate this week debates medical liability reform legislation, a national study was released linking limits on non-economic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits with increases in the supply of physicians. Released by the Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the study found that states with caps on the amount of damages awarded have approximately 12 percent more physicians per capita than states without limits. The study also examined the physician supply growth in states with and without caps, finding that the supply has grown more in states with limits in place. For more on this study, visit www.ahrq.gov.

Republicans have introduced legislation in the Senate this week that would set a $250,000 cap on non-economic damages, but Democrats have threatened to filibuster the bill to prevent a vote. OHA will provide continuing updates on this and other medical malpractice legislation at the national level. (Rick Sites, ricks@ohanet.org)

CORRECTION:
The Web site listed in yesterday’s story Health e-NEWS Plus, CMS Offers Pilot Smoking Cessation Program, was incorrect. The correct Web site is www.qualidigm.org/mssp/.

Thursday, July 10, 2003
Bill Streamlines Bond Issuance
Legislation introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives this month seeks to revise current statute regarding the issuance of tax-exempt bonds to nonprofit health care providers. House Bill 239, sponsored by Rep. Anthony Core (R-Rushsylvania), would authorize the Director of the Department of Development to issue tax-exempt bonds. Currently, only county commissioners have the ability to authorize the bonds.

OHA requested the introduction of this legislation, seeking to expand hospitals’ options for requesting and receiving tax-exempt bonds. It would also be a benefit to add the State as an authorized issuer of revenue bonds given the changing economic environment of Ohio’s health care industry, with many health care providers located in numerous political subdivisions. OHA will advocate for passage of the proposal during the legislature's fall session. (Bridget Gargan, bridgetg@ohanet.org)

Funding Approval Underway for Nurse Programs
The House Appropriations Committee late last month approved a Labor/Health and Human Services spending bill for fiscal year 2004 that includes $112.7 million for nursing programs including provisions within the Nurse Reinvestment Act.

The American Organization of Nurse Executives, the American Nurses Association, and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing called for $175 million for Title VIII nurse education programs, $160 million for the National Institute of Nursing Research, and $60 million for the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students program, of which 16 percent is directed to nursing students. The bill now goes to the full House for consideration. The Senate Appropriations Committee also passed its fiscal year 2004 Labor-HHS spending bill, which is headed for the full Senate. (Jean Scholz, jeans@ohanet.org)

Friday, July 11, 2003
JCAHO Issues Infection Control Request
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is requesting that providers review proposed revisions to the current infection control standards. JCAHO asks organizations and individuals in the ambulatory health care, behavioral health care, home care, hospital, long term care, assisted living and laboratory programs participating in this field evaluation to complete their field evaluations using the JCAHO Web site. The deadline for completing the survey, available online at www.jcaho.org/accredited+organizations/accredited+organizations+.htm, is July 28. Providers unable to access the field evaluation online can contact Joyce B. Marshall at 630.792.5934 or jmashall@jcaho.org. OHA asks that hospitals forward comments to Rosalie Weakland at rosaliew@ohanet.org.

Toolkit Helps Bridge Language Barriers
Health care providers and advocates have a new resource to help ensure appropriate and quality care for patients with limited English proficiency. The Access Project and the National Health Law Program have developed a Language Services Action Kit with information, models and advocacy tools.

The toolkit explains the federal mandates that require health care providers to ensure adequate care for patients with limited English skills, and outlines the federal funding available to hospitals for language services for patients covered by Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. It also includes reimbursement models, advocacy techniques and additional resources for language services and advocacy efforts. For more information or to order the $25 kit, visit www.accessproject.org/projects.htm.

New Technology Awards to Honor Hospitals
Hospitals are invited to apply for The Emerging Technologies and Healthcare Innovations Congress’ (TETHIC) first TETHIE Awards to recognize the best in emerging technologies and innovative solutions in health care. Awards will be given to the top performers in each of six constituency categories: Hospitals/Health Systems, Payors/Health Plans, Health Care Technology Regulation & Compliance, Physicians/Physician Organizations, Pharma/Bio Medical Innovations, and Emerging Technologies/Innovations. The deadline for entry is Aug. 22. Awards will be presented during the TETHIC conference Sept. 22-24 in Washington D.C. For more, visit www.tethic.com.