March 15, 2012 Legislation

Hospitals

Healthcare

Licensure

HIPAA

Hospitals

Illinois and the non-profit hospitals of the state are at loggerheads as to what constitutes charity care to allow tax exemptions for non-profit hospitals.  At present, the Governor has set a moratorium on further decisions regarding hospital's exemptions.  The Governor then reversed himself and let the state continue to monitor hospitals for compliance as they have in the past.        Top

Healthcare

The Senate has voted down a law to allow employers and insurers to deny coverage for contraceptives for religious reasons. 

India has order Bayer Pharmaceuticals to license their drug Nexavar to an Indian company.  To make the edict even worse they demand that Bayer make a generic form of the patented drug for the Indian company.  The rationale is that India need the drug but can not afford it.

The government has released the new guidelines for state health exchanges that are to start in 2014.  They have relaxed some of the requirements in order to get more states to comply.  The guidelines for the states run 600 pages.  The entire Obamacare bill only ran 1600 pages.   

Did you know that there is a $1 per month surcharge in the state exchange bill that is to be used to help pay for abortions?  I didn't know that. This means that no matter your beliefs you will be paying for abortions if you go into an exchange.   

The trial lawyers are opposed to the removal of the IPAB which means it is good to repeal the panel.  The reason for the trial lawyers concern is money.  To pay for the removal of the panel this would be paid for by tort reform.

The IG is looking into home health claims which account for about 2% of the false claims to Medicare.  Nothing like starting big.          Top

Licensure

Florida has suspended the license of Dr. Zannos Grekos of Bonita Springs for doing stem cell treatments on patients.  Originally he was just forbidden to do stem cell therapy but after a patient died his entire license was suspended as an emergency.  The local DA is also investigating the physician after two patient deaths.         Top

HIPAA

The Office for Civil rights has fined Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee $1.5 million for breaching the data of over one million people in 2009.

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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.