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Yes, it is hard to believe but the Democrats are actually coming up with a plan on something. Several Democratic House and Senate people have stated they will do the usual Democratic thing and hold hundreds to town meetings with their faithful to show the shortcomings of Medicare part D. However, they also would recommend that drug plans must provide a 60 day supply of any drug not covered (this in spite of all formularies are overt and on line), a pharmacist must provide a 60 day supply if they can not confirm a status (they never state who will pay the pharmacist), there would be a standardized appeal process and medication would be supplied during the appeal ( again they don't state if the medication is on the formulary and who pays for the medication if the appeal is denied), they recommend that a supplier must keep their formulary intact once a person enrolls and can not raise the cost in mid year ( if there is a better drug and cheaper, they must keep the old one? I do agree about only raising costs once a year.) They also would pass a good law that the people who paid for the medications during the initial discombobulation would be reimbursed by the Medicare program. Top
California has ruled that HMOs must provide interpreters for it's clients. The HMOs must provide the service in the contracted providers offices or hospitals. Written materials must also be in the person's language. It is a good thing that the HMOs are making so much money since this will cost a bundle. Top
Wisconsin Republican lawmakers will pass another bill to reform med mal. This time the cap for non economical damages will be $750,000. This is what the Wisconsin Supreme Court wanted after it declared the last law, that was in place for seven years, unconstitutional. Last year the legislature passed a bill with lower caps but it was vetoed by the Democratic Governor.
The poor Washington physicians have been hung out to dry. The legislature passed a compromise bill that the physician leaders and legal people have agreed upon. The Governor will sign the bill. The bill contains no cap on non-economic damages. It does allow physicians to apologize without that being entered in court if done within 30 days of the incident, it allows the insurance commissioner the power to regulate the med mal insurance rates and it increases the kinds of mistakes hospitals must report to the state. Top
Governor Terminator of California has rescinded the 5.5% decrease in pay the California physicians would get to care for the state's Medicaid population on a fee for service basis. The reduction has been passed by the previous administration led by Governor in Exile Democrat Gray Davis. The rationale for the restoration of the cut was that the state would now be paying less for medications due to the new Medicare Part D. Top
The People's Republic of Massachusetts is now wondering why the incidence of C-Sections has risen in young healthy women. They plan to do a study. The consensus to date is the high malpractice premiums in the state as well as the increased safety of the procedure. Also women want to be able to plan their time off work. Top
Medicare has now endorsed three types of surgery for the medically obese. Medicare will now pay for the surgery as long as the patient has co-morbid diseases that are related to the obesity and the surgery is done with the three approved methods and in approved centers. The centers must be approved by either the American College of Surgery or the American Society of Bariatric Surgery. Top
DISCLAIMER: Although this article is updated periodically, it reflects the author's point of view at the time of publication. Nothing in this article constitutes legal advice. Readers should consult with their own legal counsel before acting on any of the information presented.