Health Law Attorney Blog

Section 105 of the Medicare and Medicaid Extenders Act of 2010 (“MMEA”) extended the payment to independent laboratories for the technical component (“TC”) of certain physician pathology services through calendar year (“CY”) 2011 only. In line with section 105, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (“CMS”) Proposed Physician Fee Schedule for CY 2012 revises […]

Prior to the passing of section 102(a)(1) of the Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act of 2010 (“PACMBPRA”), the 3-day payment window policy for nondiagnostic services provided prior to admission was rarely applied to wholly owned or operated physician practices. However, the enactment of section 102(a)(1) widened the range […]

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) issued a proposed rule regarding the 2012 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule on July 1, 2011 (“Proposed Rule”). Among the potential changes found in the Proposed Rule is a 50 percent discount to the professional component (“PC”) of subsequent MRI, CT, and ultrasound procedures. This proposed change mirrors […]

The Senate Finance Committee abandoned the proposed increase to the Medicare utilization rate assumption for advanced diagnostic imagining equipment priced at $1 million or more. The potential rate hike was included as a provision in a proposed free trade agreement and was meant to pay for health care benefits and job training for U.S. workers […]