4.10.13
Letter in support of Medicare Patient Empowerment Act to Rep. Tom Price, MD.
12.7.12
09.13.12
Letter to the US House of Representatives on Medicare Delivery and Payment Reform.
Letter to the US Senate on Medicare Delivery and Payment Reform.
09.10.12
Letter to CMS on Meaningful Use.
05.07.12
Sign-on letter in response to CMS proposed rule on Stage 2 of the EHR meaningful use program.
05.07.12
Letter the AMA submitted to the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology regarding standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria for EHRs.
04.16.12
Sign-on letter commenting on the proposed rule entitled Returning and Reporting of Overpayments
.
04.16.12
Sign-on letter urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to finalize clear, bright-line guidance on the Returning and Reporting of Overpayments
.
04.04.12
Seniors today who want to see a doctor who does NOT accept
Medicare must pay entirely out of their own pocket. Fortunately,
legislation has been introduced in Congress (HR.1700/S.1042) that would
allow patients to use their current Medicare coverage to help cover the cost of seeing
a non-Medicare doctor. For visits to these doctors, Medicare would pay
the amount it typically covers today, with the patient paying the doctor
directly for the difference between what Medicare pays and what the
doctor charges. Seniors would be informed of any additional costs before
seeking treatment.
This issue is about allowing seniors to see any doctor they choose
and still take advantage of their Medicare benefits. Help build
momentum on Capitol Hill to pass HR.1700/S.1042 and sign MyMedicare-MyChoice's petition to
Congress on this important issue.
03.28.12
Sign-on letter to CMS voicing concern about the simultaneous implementation of multiple programs such as: the value-based modifier, eRx penalties, PQRS and EHR incentive program, along with the transition to ICD-10, which will create extraordinary financial and administrative burden, as well as mass confusion for physicians.
03.23.12
Sign-on letter from LSMS President Andy P. Blalock to the Hon. William Cassidy regarding monitoring the performance of Highmark Insurance as the new Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) for Medicare Jurisdiction H, which includes Louisiana.
03.22.12
House Passes 'Preserving Access to Healthcare Act'
Early this afternoon, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5, the “Preserving Access to Healthcare Act” by a vote of to 223 to 181. This legislation combines two AMA-supported bills: the “Medicare Decisions Accountability Act” (H.R. 452), and the “Help Efficient, Accessible, Low-cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act” (also H.R. 5). Seven Democrats voted yes while 10 Republicans voted no and 4 Republicans voted present.
H.R. 452, originally introduced by Rep. Phil Roe, MD (R-Tenn.), would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). This legislation was combined in the Rules Committee with the HEALTH Act, which provided savings that are more than sufficient to offset the estimated $3.1 billion cost of repealing the IPAB. The HEALTH Act, originally introduced by Rep. Phil Gingrey, MD (R-Ga.), contains a wide range of AMA-supported medical liability reforms, including a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damages. The version of the HEALTH Act that was included in the combined bill did not include provisions that would permit the introduction of evidence of income from collateral sources at trial, reflecting modifications made by the House Judiciary Committee.
H.R. 5 is not likely to be considered by the Senate in its current form.
During the debate, several additional amendments of interest to physicians were also approved:
An amendment offered by Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), which would restore the application of antitrust laws to the business of health insurance by amending the McCarran-Ferguson Act, was accepted by voice vote.
Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Penn.) offered an amendment that would address the crisis in access to emergency care by extending liability coverage to on-call and emergency room physicians under the Federal Tort Claims Act, which was accepted by voice vote.
An amendment offered by Reps. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) and Jim Matheson (D-Utah) would grant limited civil liability protection to health professionals that volunteer at federally declared disaster sites, and was accepted by a vote of 251 to 157.
02.24.12
Sign-on letter for
H.R. 452, The Medicare Decisions Accountability Act, would repeal the
section of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or PPACA,
that includes the Independent Payment Advisory Board, or IPAB, a
government board whose sole job is to cut Medicare spending.
Sign-on letter #1,
#2, and
#3
to support the proposal to delay reporting until a final rule has been
issued by CMS to ensure that physicians have adequate notice of final
transparency report requirements and to provide CMS and
manufacturers/GPOs an adequate opportunity to establish a reporting
process that is consistent with the statute and congressional intent.
11.16.11
Sign-on letter to remove the restrictions in Medicare law to allow patients and physicians to voluntarily enter into private contracts, while retaining their Medicare coverage, helping preserve patient choice and timely access to care.
Follow-up to sign-on letter: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has responded in writing to the request of the AMA and over 70 state and medical specialty societies regarding the policy for Medicare-covered services furnished by physicians who do not enroll in Medicare. In the letter, CMS confirmed that physicians can enroll in Medicare as a participating (PAR) or non-participating (non-PAR) physician, or they can choose to opt-out of Medicare and furnish services to Medicare beneficiaries under private contracts. CMS also stated that Medicare requires physicians to enroll in Medicare in order to bill for services furnished to Medicare beneficiaries, whether directly from Medicare or from the beneficiary who is, in turn, reimbursed by Medicare. If a physician furnishes a covered service to a beneficiary, the physician is required to complete a claim form and submit it to Medicare on behalf of the beneficiary. Penalties can apply to physicians who do not follow this requirement. CMS also explained that CMS Form-1490S (which allows beneficiaries to seek Medicare payment) is rarely used since contractors are encouraged to educate physicians about the requirement to submit claims, but is intended to protect a beneficiary’s right to a payment determination in situations where a physicians refuses to submit a claim for a covered service on behalf of the beneficiary. CMS’ letter can be found at the following link.
07.08.11
Sign-on letter to support S.1278, which is legislation to repeal the tax on indoor tanning services
,citing a strong belief "in the advancement of public policies that promote prevention and education about skin cancer and reflect the dangers of indoor tanning."
07.06.11
Sign-on letter to support S. 668, which would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB).
07.05.11
Sign-on letter supporting CMS’ effort to create a standardized and transparent process for states to comply with section 1902(a)(30)(A) of the Social Security Act, also known as the “equal access” provision of Medicaid. However, it was felt that the "Rule," or Methods for Assuring Access to Covered Medicaid Services, published in the Federal Register on May 6, 2011, did not go far enough and the letter emphasized the need to do so.
06.30.11
Sign-on letter to oppose H.R. 2140, which "inappropriately" provides audiologists with unlimited direct access to Medicare patients without a physician referral
.
06.20.11
The LSMS signed on with a number of other organizations to express opposition to H.R. 2092, legislation to repeal the tax on indoor tanning services. The LSMS feels that like the tobacco tax, the tanning tax appropriately reflects the carcinogenic effects of indoor tanning. As it currently stands, the indoor tanning tax serves as the only policy at the federal level that acts as a deterrent to the harmful behavior and significant health risks of indoor tanning.
01.20.11
Sign-on letter to support H.R. 2, which seeks to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), and the corresponding resolution, HR 9, which directs certain Congressional committees to develop new health system reform legislation.
