SGR

AAFP Calls for Permanent Fix on Legislation’s Temporary Medicare Payment Patch

January 2, 2013     Rajiv Leventhal
news
Upon learning of the Jan. 1 news that Congress put into place a one-year “doc fix” to prevent a 26.9-percent immediate Medicare reimbursement cut to physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) is calling on legislation to repeal the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula.

What’s Happening With the “Fiscal Cliff”? Premier’s Blair Childs Explains

December 10, 2012     Mark Hagland
article
As the clock counts down to the so-called “fiscal cliff,” the negotiations between the White House and congressional Republicans reveal just how vulnerable healthcare providers are to potential reimbursement cuts and added policy mandates, as the federal government lurches forward to resolve many unresolved budget and healthcare policy issues

Post-Election 2012: Whither Healthcare on Capitol Hill? A Conversation with Premier’s Blair Childs

November 8, 2012     Mark Hagland
article
In the wake of the Nov. 6 federal elections, Blair Childs, senior vice president for public affairs at the Charlotte-based Premier health alliance, spoke with HCI Editor-in-Chief Mark Hagland regarding the election’s implications for healthcare policy and healthcare IT policy

New EHR Certification Standards: What’s the Cost?

April 4, 2012     Jennifer Prestigiacomo
blog
The headline for the ONC’s new proposed rule standards and certification criteria for EHRs 2014 edition, which was rolled out at HIMSS this year, has been all about flexibility. The ONC has envisioned the new certification criteria also giving clearer definitions of certification requirements, promoting progress toward interoperability, and reducing regulatory burden.

Got Open Doors?

September 12, 2011     Mark Hagland
blog
Only the nimblest, most data-driven hospitals will thrive in the coming reimbursement landscape

Could SGR Imperil HITECH for MDs?

December 28, 2010     Mark Hagland
article
Among the most dramatic findings of an MGMA member survey from this summer: among 2,860 groups representing 63,000 physicians in practice, based on the prospect of a 23.6 percent cut scheduled for December 1 in Medicare's sustainable growth rate (SGR), and an additional 6.5-percent cut scheduled for January 1, medical groups plan drastic changes.

Will the One-Year SGR Patch Enable HITECH?

December 15, 2010     Mark Hagland
blog
I found the passage by the U.S. Senate (Dec. 7) and U.S. House of Representatives (Dec. 9) of a one-year “SGR patch” or “SGR aversion” (as some are calling it) fascinating. In brief, members of both houses of the U.S. Congress decided to kick the proverbial can down the road for one more year, forestalling 25-percent-plus cuts in physician reimbursement under Medicare’s sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula at least until 2012.

Looming Straight Ahead: The SGR Dilemma

November 4, 2010    
blog
One of the issues that the so-called “lame duck” Congress will have to address this month is whether the current extension of the sustainable growth model, or SGR, under Medicare, will be extended yet again, and it’s a problem with immense repercussions for physicians, and ultimately for all of healthcare. If the SGR cuts take effect, it will mean a 23.2 percent pay cut to physicians as of December 1, and a total of more than a 25 percent pay cut as of January 1. (CMS had earlier projected a 29.5 percent pay cut, but on Tuesday, revised downward that estimate to a total 25 percent cut as of Jan. 1, unless nothing is done legislatively.)

Could SGR Imperil HITECH for MDs?

October 26, 2010     Mark Hagland
article
Among the most dramatic findings of an MGMA member survey from this summer: among 2,860 groups representing 63,000 physicians in practice, based on the prospect of a 23.6 percent cut scheduled for December 1 in Medicare’s sustainable growth rate (SGR), and an additional 6.5 percent cut scheduled for January 1, medical groups plan drastic changes.

D.C. Report: HHS Funding, Tax Extenders Bill, NHIT Week

June 10, 2010     Sharon Canner
article
As part of its $2 billion program to encourage the adoption of health IT for low-income and uninsured individuals, HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) awarded $83.9 million to networks of health centers and other health IT systems. The networks, comprised of at least three collaborating organizations, are community-based groups that support HRSA-funded health centers that provide primary health care to nearly 19 million patients.