October 2007
Physician Extenders
Malpractice Changes - New
Administrative Rule
Please note that effective March 1, 2008, the Indiana Patient’s Compensation Fund will
require all licensed psychologists, podiatrists, optometrists, nurse
practitioners, nurse midwives and certified registered nurse anesthetists to
obtain a separate medical malpractice insurance policy.
Surgery Centers
The Merger of AAASC and FASA
For those of you involved with surgery centers, making news right now is the
pending merger of the nation's two largest ASC associations. Effective
January 1, 2008, AAASC and FASA will become ASCA--the Ambulatory Surgery
Center Association. You can read the full details on
FASA's web site.
Stark II, Phase III
Physician Fee Schedule and
Under
Arrangements
AAASC recently commented on a
Wall
Street Journal article that was published on September 12, 2007. There was "nothing new" released from CMS regarding this topic, and the WSJ
article appeared to be commentary based on the
Proposed Rule for the
Physician Fee Schedule for 2008 that was released in July (earlier than
usual).
CMS did not specifically address "under arrangements" joint ventures in that
proposed rule other than to say they intend to address them in the future,
and separately stated they were reversing their previous
position that "per click" and "per unit of service" arrangements were
"okay." It was expected at that time (July) "in the future" meant March of 2008 -
subsequently CMS released the "Stark III" regulations - again very much ahead of
schedule - without further addressing "under arrangements" other than as
noted in the next paragraph.
The Stark II, Phase III ("Stark III") regulations that were published in the
Federal Register on September 5 addressed "under arrangements" joint
ventures in that CMS has taken the position these are "compensation
arrangements" versus "investment in an entity to which DHS is referred." CMS
also introduced the "stand in the shoes" interpretation whereby a physician
cannot be "insulated" from a direct relationship via ownership in an
intermediary entity. The industry is still absorbing and analyzing these
recent proposed and final regulations, and we expect more interpretations
and clarifications in the coming months. The "Stark III" regulations are
effective December 5, 2007.
Please contact Jeff
Boomershine if you would like further information on these issues.
SCHIP - State Children's Health Insurance Program
The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIPRA) to extend the SCHIP program was passed with bi-partisan support in the Congress and vetoed by the President on October 3, 2007. On October 18, with a vote of 273-156, the House failed by 13 votes to override President Bush's veto, which would have reauthorized and expanded the State Children's Health Insurance Program beyond its current expiration date of November 16, 2007. We anticipate that another version of the bill will be forthcoming that may be more acceptable to House members.
Congratulations to Our Clients for Receiving
HealthGrades
Awards
McBride Clinic Orthopedic Hospital received the 2008 Orthopedic Surgery Excellence Award and ranked #1 in the state of Oklahoma for Overall Orthopedic Services and is the ONLY hospital in Oklahoma to rank within the top 5% in the nation for Overall Orthopedic Services. Along with specialty awards, HealthGrades also awards "star" ratings based on quality of outcomes. McBride Clinic received 5-Star ratings (the highest awarded) in Overall Orthopedic Services, Joint Replacement, Spine Surgery, Total Knee Replacement, Hip Fracture Repair and Back & Neck Surgery.
Indiana Orthopaedic Hospital was the winner of the 2008 Joint Replacement Surgery Excellence Award and Spinal Surgery Excellence Award. They ranked among the top 5% in the nation for Joint Replacement Surgery, ranked among the top 5% in the nation for Spinal Surgery, ranked #1 in Indiana for Spinal Surgery and ranked top 5 in Indiana for Joint Replacement Surgery. Indiana Orthopaedic Hospital also received 5-Star ratings in Joint Replacement Surgery, Total Knee Replacement, Total Hip Replacement, Back and Neck Surgery and Spinal Fusion.
Would you like to share your hospital's HealthGrades report with our subscribers? If so, please send the details to us in an email to info@somersetcpas.com.
Somerset Health Care Team News
Jeff Boomershine and David Wolfe are attending and exhibiting at the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) conference in Los Angeles, California from October 25 to 31. If you are attending the conference, please stop by to speak with us at Booth 557.
Somerset recently sponsored and facilitated discussion panels for the first meeting of the Western Orthopaedic Forum. This forum is made up of 17 orthopaedic groups.
Mike McCaslin recently presented "In-Office Imaging and Physical Therapy" and "Compensation Plans for Private Groups" and participated in panel discussion on these topics at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Practice Management conference in Las Vegas.
Health Care Commentaries is provided by Somerset’s Health Care Team for our clients and other interested persons upon request. Since technical information is presented in generalized fashion, no final conclusion on these topics should be made without further review. For additional information on the issues discussed, please contact a member of our Health Care Team. This document is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer.
Somerset CPAs, P.C.
3925 River Crossing Parkway, Third Floor
Indianapolis, Indiana 46240
317.472.2200 • 800.469.7206 • FAX 317.208.1200
http://healthcare.somersetcpas.com