Healthcare Reform

NO TO OPIODS: GRANTING PATIENTS CONTROL OVER THE USE OF PAIN MEDS IN THEIR CARE

April 3, 2017 | Little Health Law

1238683_untitled Prescribing opioids for pain can be a routine part of medical treatment, however, opioids are a national dilemma and though patients may need them for pain management, they are also highly addictive. Some patients being administered these prescriptions are recovering from opioid addictions and face a high-risk of relapse. And, because some more unscrupulous health care providers use “pill mills” to make money, there is a strong push in many states to protect patients. This push has brought about a new idea – patient directives that notify providers NOT to prescribe or administer opioids to them.

Virtual Health Care May Become All the Rage

August 22, 2016 | Little Health Law

mobile-phone-in-hand-1438231-1-m How could it not?

The healthcare industry is rapidly evolving. As recently reported in U.S. News and World Report, next on telemedicine’s horizon may be virtual care clinics. In fact, so-called virtual care will likely revolutionize the delivery of health care in the coming years. “Virtual,” in this context, alludes to the fact that care providers, doctors, nurses and therapists, may provide most care from many miles away.

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Various genres of “virtual care” delivery exists already. One notable pioneer is Mercy Virtual. Mercy, based in Chesterfield, Missouri, emphasizes that an objective of its mission is to ensure access to quality care, explaining: “Mercy Virtual’s mission is to connect patients with leading care providers whenever, wherever they need help.” In recent years, many other medical businesses are finding and developing their own niches in the evolving virtual healthcare world. Several of the numerous examples are: Teladoc, which provides online, 24/7 access to primary care physician services; American Well, which claims to offer “telehealth” to more than 100 million people in an online marketplace where customers select their healthcare provider from a list; Carena provides a range of healthcare services that include virtual visits for the employees of self-insured companies; Zipnosis is a platform that, through “phone and video care,” helps patients get answers to their healthcare questions and helps physicians treat primary care ailments; MeVisit enables “e-visits” that allow patients to use their mobile device to connect with a doctor.

Senate Finance Committee Proposes Changes to STARK Law

July 8, 2016 | Little Health Law

law-education-series-3-68918-m In a Senate Finance Committee Majority Staff Report (the Senate Report) entitled, “Why Stark, Why Now?”, the Committee’s Chairman, Senator Orrin Hatch, argues that changes are needed to Stark Law.

Georgia Stark Law and Physician Self-Referral Attorneys

The Senate Report is, at a minimum, a strong indicator that calls for change in the law are heard and efforts are underway to evaluate improvements to the law.

A Brief History of Stark Law

Stark Law is Federal physician self-referral law premised upon the notion that physicians are prone to order (i.e., “refer”) more medical items and services if they stand to benefit financially from doing so. For example, where a physician has an ownership interest in a lab to which he refers patients, he will incentivized to send more patients to the lab for lab work.

Thus in 1989 Representative Fortney “Pete” Stark (D-CA), of whom the statute was named, proposed the law to address two perceived adverse consequences of financial incentives for physician self-referrals of medical items and services reimbursed by a Federal healthcare program: (1) overbilling of Federal healthcare programs; and (2) the provision of medical services that do not benefit a patient. Stark Law, Section 1877 of the Social Security Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. § 1395nn, as originally passed, was a fairly straightforward and narrow prohibition that precluded a physician from referring patients or specimens to clinical labs, including physician office labs, where labs paid for by fed programs (Medicare, Medicaid, or CHAMPUS) if the physician (or immediate family member) had a “financial relationship” with the lab. Indeed, Pete Stark declared in sponsoring the law that the intent was to create a “bright line” standard that would benefit physicians and protect Federal healthcare programs. But the law did not remain simple and expanded from the straightforward lab referral context to apply to a list of services and items known as “Designated Health Services,” identified by CMS billing codes.

CMS Announces Medicare’s New Primary Care Reimbursement Initiative, “Comprehensive Primary Care Plus”

April 25, 2016 | Little Health Law

usa-dollar-bills-1431130-m CMS recently announced what it describes as the largest-ever multi-payer initiative to improve primary care in America,” known as Comprehensive Primary Care Plus (CPC+). Though much of the press release is couched in terms of improving patient care — and surely CPC+ is intended to do so — the real impetus appears to be the government’s critical need to control healthcare costs funded by federal programs.

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The idea is to support a new primary care delivery model that will incentivize and reward value and quality. The current Administration’s goal is to have 50% of all Medicare fee-for-service payments made via alternative payment models by 2018. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, which exists pursuant to Section 1115A of the Social Security Act (added under the Affordable Care Act) for the purpose of testing new payment and service delivery models, developed CPC+ as part of its mission, to aid the federal government in its efforts to curb its healthcare costs and enhance the quality of healthcare delivery.

CMS Expected To Provide New Guidance For Hospitals’ Uncompensated Care

April 18, 2016 | Little Health Law

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For several years, hospital administrators have been adjusting to changes in federal rules for calculating patients’ unpaid medical bills into hospital Medicare reimbursement.

The federal government provides funding to hospitals that treat indigent patients under so-called “Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) programs,” which provide partial compensation to facilities based on a formula. Many of the roughly 3,100 hospitals receiving DSH payments are teaching hospitals or those in large urban areas.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act changed the formula for calculating DSH payments in fiscal year 2014, significantly reducing the share hospitals received, with goals of reducing funding for the Medicare DSH payments initially by 75 percent and subsequently increasing payments based on the percent of the population uninsured and the amount of uncompensated care provided; and to reduce the Medicaid DSH program by $18.1 billion by 2020.

Physician Employment and Contracting

March 7, 2016 | Little Health Law

to-sign-a-contract-2-1221951-m In making a decision to pursue medicine and healthcare as a livelihood, it is likely that most physicians today did not contemplate the extent to which legally binding contracts would govern and impact their professional lives. Few other careers carry the same potential for commitment to so much paper and binding agreements that simultaneously foster professional opportunities and create hazardous legal and professional risks (for example, a non-compete agreement that bars future employment needed to avoid selling the house and moving; a contract with a hospital system that memorializes a compensation arrangement but, unbeknownst to the doctor when he signs, violates STARK law). In this day, all physicians should be mindful of the critical importance of good contracting principles and practices.

Physician employment

The healthcare industry, perhaps more dramatically than other industries, is prone to changes, trends, and developments. A sustained trend has been physician employment (versus private practice ownership). In the 1990s, with the evolution of HMOs, the industry trended toward high levels of physician employment, a trend that petered out some during the 2000s with decreasing physician employment as HMOs dissolved. In recent years, however, the healthcare industry returned to a strong trend toward physician employment driven by numerous factors derived from healthcare “reform.” Whether the current physician employment trend is more permanent than the last one is unknown, but some experts predict that the high level of physician employment is here to stay. As reported last year in the Dallas/Forth Worth Healthcare Daily, some experts believe that physicians’ need for stability with regard to future income will drive a lasting employment trend.

Legal and Compliance Concerns in Telemedicine and Other Healthcare Technology in 2016

January 5, 2016 | Little Health Law

mobile-phone-in-hand-1438231-1-m High on the list of trends in the healthcare industry in 2016 is the advancement of technology in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and medical conditions. According to a recent online article in Healthcare Finance, thirty-two percent of consumers in 2015 had at least one health, medical or fitness app on their mobile devices. Such apps can be useful for primary care and chronic disease management, among other areas. Telemedicine will continue to grow in 2016 as well, with physicians and other health providers consulting and treating patients remotely. Providers increasing their use of technology can expand the geographic reach of their practice to include a greater number of patient consumers. Indeed, the Affordable Care Act anticipates and encourages the use of telemedicine and other remote technologies as an efficient and cost-effective method for expanding the reach of healthcare services.

Of course, with the increasing use of technology in healthcare comes attendant legal and compliance concerns, ranging from issues of patient privacy and cybersecurity to state regulatory and medical ethics requirements governing patient care, billing and reimbursement.

Providers considering increasing their use of telemedicine and other technology in the provision of services should first evaluate the legal and regulatory issues carefully, understanding that federal and state entities have specific definitions, compliance and legal requirements governing these practices. Some concerns as to this mode of healthcare delivery are as follows:

CMS’ New Final Rule for Durable Medical Equipment Requires Prior Authorization

December 31, 2015 | Little Health Law

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The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Final Rule earlier this week, which created prior authorization rules applicable to particular durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS). The impetus for the rule is CMS’ determination that prior authorization will curb past issues with unnecessary utilization of DMEPOS, saving the government money and enhancing the care of Medicare beneficiaries.

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The Social Security Act (the Act) authorizes CMS to periodically revise its list of DMEPOS that is subjected to unnecessary utilization and to develop a prior authorization process for such items. See the Act, § 1834(a)(15). CMS broadly considers “unnecessary utilization” to include “the furnishing of items that do not comply with one or more of Medicare’s coverage, coding, and payment rules.” The Final Rule creates a Master List of specific DMEPOS potentially subject to prior authorization. The so-called “Master List,” together with pertinent other information regarding the list, can be accessed via this link. An items presence on the Master List does not automatically create a prior authorization requirement. CMS will implement a subset of items on the Master List, a “Required Prior Authorization List,” which will be published in the Federal Register with 60 days’ notice before implementation.

ACA Open Enrollment Season: Answers to Consumer Frequently Asked Questions

November 16, 2015 | Little Health Law

1084630_question_mark_1 Open Enrollment Season for federal and state exchanges offering insurance coverage in the “Health Insurance Marketplace” for 2016 began this month, and will run through January 31, 2016. During this period, individuals may newly enroll with, renew or change their health insurance plans or providers. In fact, more than 543,000 people have already obtained coverage in the Marketplace during the first week of open enrollment for 2016. Thirty-four percent of those were new consumers, per a report by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

According to an article published by “Shots,” the online channel for health stories from the National Public Radio Science Desk, the occasion of Open Enrollment Season has prompted many consumer questions about details of enrollment and available marketplace plans, including the impact of high deductible plans; options in obtaining in- and out-of-network health services; and confronting cost increases in marketplace health plans.

Some guidance provided in response to consumer questions are as follows:

HHS Lauds Savings Opportunities Available to American Consumers with ACA November 1, 2015 Open Enrollment

October 31, 2015 | Little Health Law

The United States Department of Health & Human Resources (HHS) is promoting what it styles as “affordability and choice” in the Health Insurance Marketplace used by US consumers to buy health insurance mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Tomorrow, the Open Enrollment Period for shopping health insurance coverage within the Health Insurance Marketplace begins. In a 33-page report, entitled “2016 Marketplace Premium Landscape Issue Brief 10-30-15 Final,” issued yesterday, HHS indicates that the ACA is “continuing to promote competition, choice and affordability in the Marketplace for plan year 2016.”

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As new and prior enrollees weigh options available in the Health Insurance Marketplace to determine what insurance plans may best suit their needs and resources, they should consider the “premiums, deductibles, out-of-pocket costs, provider network, formulary, and customer service” particulars of the various plan options, according to the report. The HHS report outlines “Key Findings,” which include those summarized as follows:

The ACA promotes access to affordable health insurance plans
Shopping saves money: about 86 percent of enrollees “can find a lower premium plan in the same metal level before tax credits by returning the Marketplace to shop for coverage.
About 72 percent of current enrollees can find a plan for $75/month, or less, after factoring tax credits.
About 57 percent of current enrollees can find a plan for $75/month or less within their metal level.
Next year, a 27-year-old with $25,000/year income will on average receive an annual tax credit of $1,164, compared to $972 this year. A family of four with an income of $60,000 will on average receive an annual tax credit of $5,568, compared to $4,848 this year.
The average consumer has 10 insurance issuers in his/her state. On average, enrollees can pick from 5 issuers for coverage next year.