Ouch, ObamaCare

ObamaCare is Already Damaging Health Care – By Lloyd M. Krieger
The Wall Street Journal – February 23, 2011
The Republicans who now control the House of Representatives hope to repeal or defund ObamaCare, but the law has already yielded profound, destructive changes that will not be undone by repeal or defunding alone. Active steps and [...]

New Guidances Issued on PPACA Over the Counter Rx Reimbursements and Mini-Med Plan Waivers

September 4, 2010
Source: NAHU or National Association of Health Underwriters
In early September 2010, the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released updated guidance on two important provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) affecting consumer and employer benefits.
1) IRS Guidance on 2011 Changes to OTC Drug [...]

CBS 60 Minutes Video

The Cost of Dying: End-of-Life Care
watch video

CMS intends to streamline PECOS enrollment process

July 02, 2010 | Richard Pizzi, Editor Healthcare Finance News

WASHINGTON – The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans to work with providers to address concerns about enrollment in Medicare’s Provider Enrollment, Chain and Ownership System.
PECOS is the electronic system used to enroll physicians and eligible professionals into the Medicare program.
As part of that effort, CMS [...]

Health care reform laws prompt surge in ‘concierge medicine’

by Janet St. James, WFAA.com
SOUTHLAKE — Few physicians can dedicate the time and attention to patients that Marcus Welby MD famously did in that 1970s television series.
Dr. Robin Hall in Southlake does.
She’s part of a booming health trend called concierge care.
In soothing spa-like surroundings, Dr. Hall provides medical care 24-7, house calls, same-day appointments at [...]

Concierge practices multiply as more docs drop Medicare

By Debra Beaulieu
As growing numbers of physicians tire of keeping up with the increasingly frantic treadmill of traditional practice [1] with the near-constant threat of doing it for less and less pay [2], it’s possible concierge medicine may become less boutique and more mainstream.
The American Academy of Private Physicians, the trade group representing the concierge [...]

Texas doctors opting out of Medicare at alarming rate

By Todd Ackerman, Houston Chronicle, May 17, 2010
Texas doctors are opting out of Medicare at alarming rates, frustrated by reimbursement cuts they say make participation in government-funded care of seniors unaffordable.
Two years after a survey found nearly half of Texas doctors weren’t taking some new Medicare patients, new data shows 100 to 200 a year [...]

Opting Out of the Third Party System Will Save The Doctor-Patient Relationship

Post by: Richard Amerling, MD
Now that the Senate version of ObamaCare has become the law of the land, we need strategies to safeguard the doctor-patient relationship from government intrusion.   The most effective approach is for both patients and physicians to opt out of the third party payment system.
From the patients’ perspective, opting out makes sense.  [...]

How Health Care Reform Could Impact The HSA

AAPP member, Dr. Paul Davis asked this question this week, and it is an issue of concern to all of us.
“I have heard that if the current Health Reform Bill passes, they will do away with the HSA option. Is that true, and if so, what can be done about it?”
We asked HSA guru, Roy [...]

HSA Qualified Expenses (and a few that aren’t)

As the marketplace begins to discover the complementary nature of private medicine and consumer directed health plans, it will be important for private physicians to understand the ins and outs of HSAs.
The following lists provide a brief summary of the information described in IRS Publication 502. The lists are intended to serve as a quick [...]