Reimbursement

A lot has been written about meaningful use, and although many claim it's "all good," one expert believes its drawbacks, such as the cost of IT and the changes it means for a doctor's practice, could outweigh the benefits of potential HITECH Act stimulus funds.

Medicaid, neither as it exists today nor how it changes under the Affordable Care Act can assure access for the poor. Additionally, costs will not be affordable. Many providers will not see Medicaid recipients, chronic diseases will not be managed, and care will be provided in emergency rooms rather than in more appropriate locations. A radical "do over" may be the best solution.

The newest monthly Physician Wellbeing Index from online medical learning network QuantiaMD shows that 26 percent of primary care physicians report poor financial health.

The Medicaid expansion was supposed to be the least controversial part of the health reform lawsuit. But since the Supreme Court essentially made broadening its eligibility voluntary for states, not a day goes by without news reports guessing how Medicaid will fare in the future.

Grand Junction, Colo., gets a lot of credit and attention as being home to pioneers in providing high-quality, low-cost healthcare. Healthcare leaders in the city of more than 58,000 are once again demonstrating their initiative.

Grand Junction, Colo., gets a lot of credit and attention as being home to pioneers in providing high-quality, low-cost healthcare. Healthcare leaders in the city of more than 58,000 are once again demonstrating their initiative.

A new report from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services shows that health insurers that offer commercial and Medicare plans operate at a loss for their Medicaid plans, while those that specialize in Medicaid only operate at a profit.

A Government Accountability Office report issued late last week examining Medicare EHR incentive payments found only 16 percent of eligible hospitals and 9 percent of professionals received payments under the program in 2011.

If mobile medical apps are going to stand any chance of survival -- with physicians as well as consumers -- they'll have to be able to integrate with other devices and healthcare platforms, with electronic medical records and personal health records.

Upcoding. Overpayment. Out-and-out fraud. By some estimates, such vulnerability adds up to hundreds of billions of dollars of unnecessary healthcare spending each year. Yet healthcare still struggles to get at the root of fraud, waste and abuse (FWA). Why has this consistently been the case, when we all understand the imperative to find a solution?