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A 2007 lawsuit involving an incident at a Louisiana hospital illustrates the lack of understanding among providers regarding the provisions and applications of the HIPAA privacy rule, notes Elizabeth H. Hogue, Esq., a Burtonsville, MD-based attorney specializing in health care issues.
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A recent security-related incident at a U.S. hospital is of "significant concern" and should serve as a wake-up call to health care leaders, suggests Stephen Frew, JD, a web site publisher (www.medlaw.com) and risk management specialist.
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A fee schedule change affecting payment for ground ambulance charges under Section 414 of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003 provides increased payments for urban and rural services, adds an increased payment for ambulance transports originating in certain low-density population areas, and provides a 25% bonus on the mileage rate for ground transports of 51 miles or greater.
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The 2008 Fortune magazine list of "100 Best Companies to Work For" includes 11 hospitals and health systems, including Methodist Hospital System in Houston, which placed 10th.
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Emergency department patients waited an average of 30 minutes to see a physician in 2004, eight minutes longer than in 1997, according to a study of U.S. ED visits published on-line recently by Health Affairs.
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted a request from the American Hospital Association (AHA) to allow critical access hospitals to submit and publicly report outpatient quality data along with other hospitals.
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(Editor's note: This month we begin a two-month look at partnerships between hospice agencies and long-term care providers. This issue contains stories related to key issues to address in developing and maintaining relationships between hospice agencies and long-term care facilities, including potential legal risks as well as tips to strengthen relationships. Next month, we look at a hospice agency that has developed an inpatient hospice unit within a long-term care facility.)
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Any contract with another organization requires careful attention to details, regulations, and legal issues, but hospice agencies need to pay special attention when contracting with a long-term care facility to provide services, says Meg S.L. Pekarske, JD, an attorney with Reinhart Boerner in Madison, WI.
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The following guidelines are recommended by the Drug and Food Administration (FDA) for disposal of medications.
