In the past month, we've blogged about the travails of doctors, especially primary care physicians. As doctors reduce patient loads and medical students opt to specialize to earn more money, the primary care physicians shortage will only grow. The American Academy of Family Physicians said there will be 40,000 fewer such doctors in 10 years. The group predicts 160,000 fewer primary care doctors by 2025. One solution to the impending shortage is to increase residency positions at teaching … [Read more...] about Are Doctors Dropping Medicare Patients?
Primary Care Physician Shortage Bills ‘Anemic’
According to the Kaiser Network, congressional bills set to extend health insurance to the presently uninsured don't address how primary care physicians will deal with the heavy load of new patients. The American Academy of Family Physicians said there will be 40,000 fewer such doctors in 10 years. The group predicts 160,000 fewer primary care doctors by 2025. One solution to the impending shortage is to increase residency positions at teaching hospitals. We blogged last week about medical … [Read more...] about Primary Care Physician Shortage Bills ‘Anemic’
Texas Register Updates: Rates for Nursing, Medical Board Rules
The following information was obtained from the October 2 issue of the Texas Register: Public Notices HHSC has adopted new Medicaid per diem payment rates for the nursing facility program operated DADS, effective September 1, 2009: Base Rates by RUG Add-on Rates by Enhancement Level Liability Insurance See the relevant section of the Texas Register for more information. HHSC will hold a public hearing on October 20, 2009, at 9:00 a.m. to receive public comment on proposed … [Read more...] about Texas Register Updates: Rates for Nursing, Medical Board Rules
A Future with Fewer Primary Care Physicians?
Everyone in health care is feeling the pinch of the recession, including primary care physicians. Some are opting to charge patients annual fees to provide personal services. For example, they're reducing patient loads and charging remaining patients $2,000 a year for services like annual physicals, 24/7 access by phone and e-mail, same-day and next-day appointments, and a CD containing personal medical records. As more medical students are choosing to go into specialties, the pressure on … [Read more...] about A Future with Fewer Primary Care Physicians?
Texas Register Updates: Higher FY Expenditures
The following information was obtained from the September 25 Texas Register: HHSC will submit amendments to the Texas State Plan for Medical Assistance, which would modify reimbursement methodologies for Physicians and Certain Other Practitioners, and Durable Medical Equipment. The changes may result in an additional aggregate expenditure of $17,784,701 for FY 2010. HHSC will submit an amendment that would provide for higher levels of managed care savings in the PACE program, and may … [Read more...] about Texas Register Updates: Higher FY Expenditures
Texas Register Updates: Medical Board, Board of Nursing
The following information was obtained from the September 18 issue of the Texas Register: Public Notices HHSC adopted new Medicaid per diem rates for Non-State Operated ICF/MR Services by Level of Need and Facility Size. The rates are found here. See the relevant section of the Texas Register for more information. Emergency Rules The Texas Board adopted an emergency repeal of §180.1, concerning Rehabilitation Orders, and added new sections to Chapter 180, concerning Texas Physician … [Read more...] about Texas Register Updates: Medical Board, Board of Nursing
Physician-Owned Hospitals
Dallas-Forth Worth has more physician-owned hospitals than any other metro area, according to the Dallas Morning News. About 9.7 percent of the country's physician-owned hospitals are in the area, and Texas itself has the highest rate in the country. Opponents of such facilities believe doctors may base medical decisions on how much money they'll make, citing a study showing that after doctors bought a Tulsa specialty hospital, the odds of a patient undergoing a complex spinal procedure was … [Read more...] about Physician-Owned Hospitals
Trouble for Medicaid, Primary Care Doctors
President Barack Obama proposes to expand Medicaid to cover some uninsured Americans. Obviously, the expansion would involve taxpayers forking over a great deal of money, which would put more pressure on already cash-strapped states. Arizona, for example, has the highest Medicaid rate in the country, and would face a "financial tsunami" under Obama's plan. Florida has seen money-saving results when it moved thousands of Medicaid patients into private managed care plans. Patients' bills were … [Read more...] about Trouble for Medicaid, Primary Care Doctors
Texas Register Updates: ICF/MR, Nurses, Medical Board
The following information was obtained from the September 4 issue of the Texas Register: Public Notice HHSC intents to submit an amendment to the Texas State Plan for Medical Assistance, which would delete the provisions for fiscal accountability for the non-state-operated ICF/MR 2008 cost reporting period, effective September 4, 2009. See the relevant section of the Texas Register for details. Proposed Rules The Texas Board of Nursing proposes to amend §211.7, concerning Executive … [Read more...] about Texas Register Updates: ICF/MR, Nurses, Medical Board
State Medicaid, Health Care Issues
Last month we wrote about how some primary care physicians are dealing with the growing costs of health care by charging fees to provide personalized, or concierge, care. These efforts involve reducing the number of patients and charging remaining patients about $2,000 a year for services that include annual physicals, 24/7 access by phone and e-mail, same-day/next-day appointments, and a CD containing personal medical information. The Kaiser Network rounds up links to news articles about the … [Read more...] about State Medicaid, Health Care Issues
