The final rule on the Medicare physician fee schedule, released by the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid on November 1, included a recommended increase in the work value of evaluation and management services.
posted 12.15.06
The Children with Special Health Care Needs Services Program, which serves children with extraordinary medical needs, disabilities and chronic health conditions, has announced that 143 clients on its waiting list are now eligible to receive full health care benefits.
posted 12.06.06
Increased advocacy efforts from TAFP leadership and staff have resulted in more media coverage in major markets for both the specialty of family medicine and the Academy.
posted 11.14.06
Report: Texas health premiums climb, wages stagnateFamily health insurance premiums for Texas workers have risen 7.4 times faster than median earnings over the past six years, according to an October study by Families USA.
posted 10.31.06
Texas physicians tell lawmakers to “save health care”Texas physicians joined a throng of other health care professionals and their friends, family and patients from around the country on the U.S. Capitol lawn Sept. 27 to tell Congress to take action on issues that threaten access to health care for all Americans.
posted 10.03.06
Goertz and Mabry elected to AAFP positionsTwo Texas voices will represent the interests of family physicians within the American Academy of Family Physicians.
posted 09.28.06
Executive order supports HIT and quality measuresAll federal agencies and their contractors that administer or sponsor a federal health care program must make information about the quality and price of health care available to their beneficiaries, enrollees and providers, according to an executive order signed by President Bush on Aug. 22.
posted 08.25.06
DSHS wages whooping cough campaignThe number of cases of pertussis, a bacterial illness also known as whooping cough, has steadily increased in Texas over the years, rising from 36 recorded cases in 1976 to 2,000 last year.
posted 08.25.06
HHSC launches Medicaid resource Web pageThe Health and Human Services Commission’s Office of Community Collaboration has launched a Web page that brings Medicaid informational resources together and acts as an interactive forum.
posted 08.18.06
TAFP sends a letter to Trailblazer Health Enterprises, LLC, on Electrodiagnostic Studies NCS/EMGRead the letter TAFP sent to Trailblazer Health Enterprises, LLC, voicing the concern that family physician's ability to deliver quality care will be adversely affected by the draft Medicare local coverage determination (LCD) on Electrodiagnostic Studies NCS/EMG .
posted 08.08.06
TMHP: Providers Can Serve Both PCCM and HMO ClientsTexas Medicaid Healthcare Partnership, the state’s contractor for Medicaid services, recently posted an alert on its Web site to update physicians on the repeal of Primary Care Case Management in the Medicaid STAR areas of Bexar, Dallas, El Paso, Harris and Lubbock.
posted 08.04.06
TAFP responds to CMS regarding possible E&M increases for MedicareCMS has proposed to increase Medicare payments for the common services physicians provide, based on recommendations from the American Medical Association’s Relative-Value Committee.
posted 08.04.06
TAFP asks TMA to join forces on Medicare E&M paymentThe Academy has requested that the Texas Medical Association join the effort to encourage CMS to adopt and finalize the proposed changes to the Medicare payment system.
posted 08.04.06
TAFP tells Senate committee that health care transparency should include smart card technologyOn July 26, the Senate Committee on State Affairs heard testimony from health plans, hospitals, provider groups and business groups on the latest fad in health care cost containment schemes – transparency, a term that seems to have a different meaning for each party involved
posted 08.04.06
Primary care income down 10 percentAverage physician income dropped more than 7 percent between 1995 and 2003 after adjusting for inflation, according to a national study from the Center for Studying Health System Change.
posted 06.30.06
Physician shortage expected by 2020Enrollment in U.S. medical schools should be increased 30 percent by 2015 to ensure quality health care for an aging and growing population, according to a new report by the Association of American Medical Colleges.
posted 06.30.06
Reimbursement available for Hurricane Rita evacuee careHealth care providers who cared for evacuees of Hurricane Rita are eligible for reimbursement through the Texas Medicaid office and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
posted 06.21.06
CMS proposed rule could cut funding for family medicine trainingThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has issued a proposed rule that could have a detrimental effect on family medicine residency programs.
posted 06.08.06
HealthFind 2006 conference to be held in AustinHealthFind 2006 is a rural health care recruiting event where current and prospective physicians can meet representatives from rural communities around the state in need of health professionals.
posted 06.06.06
Demand for family physicians climbsRecruitment for family physicians rose by 55 percent from May 2005 to April 2006 according to a May 24 Associated Press story.
posted 05.26.06
HHSC reinstates transition period for PCCM primary care provider selectionIn answer to physician inquiries, the state’s contractor for Medicaid services has made it possible for a Medicaid patient in a Primary Care Case Management expansion area to see a physician who is not listed as their primary care provider.
posted 05.15.06
Coding and Billing CME availableThe coding and billing system has seen a total of 458 code changes in 2006. Keep current with a CAFP monograph.
posted 05.11.06
Attention: Internet scam targets diplomatesThe American Board of Medical Specialties issued an alert on April 7 to warn member boards of an internet marketing campaign and practice that targets diplomates of ABMS.
posted 05.10.06
HHSC grants grace period for new MRI policyOn May 1, 2006, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission instituted a new policy that requires prior authorization for MRIs and other imaging services for Medicaid or Medicaid PCCM patients.
posted 05.08.06
Organizations unite to address the uninsuredMedical professionals from around the state gathered for a May 2 conference at Huston Tillotson University to unite behind one goal: band together to cover the uninsured today and ensure a better tomorrow.
posted 05.04.06
Senate passes new business taxThe Texas Department of State Health Services has announced that 135 children have been approved for coverage through the Children with Special Health Care Needs Services Program.
posted 05.03.06
State Health Services extends coverage to 135 children with special needsThe Texas Department of State Health Services has announced that 135 children have been approved for coverage through the Children with Special Health Care Needs Services Program.
posted 05.02.06
Senate committee approves HB 3The Senate Finance Committee voted on Friday, April 28, to send House Bill 3, which imposes a new tax on the gross receipts of all businesses earning more than $300,000 per year, to the Senate floor.
posted 05.01.06
Numbers of uninsured increase among workersAlthough low-income adults are the most likely to be uninsured, a new study reports that 41 percent of working-age Americans with moderate to middle incomes were uninsured for at least part of the past year.
posted 05.01.06
Texas House passes tax billThe Texas House of Representatives passed a new business tax late Monday evening, April 24, on a bipartisan 80 to 69 vote.
posted 04.25.06
The Doctors Company announces 18 percent reduction in malpractice insurance premiumsA leading medical liability insurance company has cut its rates by 18 percent for Texas policy holders, providing further evidence that Texas tort reform is paying off for both physicians and patients. The national company hopes to attract more Texas physicians with this effort. Read the company press release.
posted 03.27.06
Experts expect heavier obesity burden on the world, call for actionBy 2010, more than half of children living in the North and South America will be overweight, a report says.
posted 03.13.06
Physician workforce shortages impede CHC expansion plansWhen President Bush articulated his plan to expand the capacity of community health centers to care for underserved communities, a group of physicians and researchers in Washington state asked who would staff these clinics.
posted 03.02.06
Medicare Plan D problems persistSince the new Medicare prescription drug plan went into effect Jan.1, doctors and pharmacists have struggled to sort through reams of dizzying formularies, figure out co-pays and sift through insurance plans.
posted 03.02.06
AHA/ASA: Stroke survivors not out of the woods yetAlmost a third of the estimated 700,000 strokes that occur each year in the United States are recurrent strokes, making a second stoke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) the greatest threat to stroke or TIA survivors.
posted 03.02.06
TMHP to host March conference calls on PCCMThe Texas Medicaid and Healthcare Partnership has scheduled three conference calls to address questions about the expansion of Primary Care Case Management.
posted 02.13.06
Flood of requests swamps flu vaccine manufacturerAfter one frenzied day of pre-booking, one national vaccine provider has stopped accepting pre-booking orders for the 2006-07 flu season.
posted 02.03.06
Medicare physician payment cuts reversedGood news for physicians: the U.S. House of Representatives voted today to reverse the 4.4 percent cut in Medicare physician payment that went into effect on January 1.
posted 02.01.06
Physician group: Primary care is doomedPrimary care, the backbone of the nation’s health care system, will collapse unless several reforms are made, according to a recent study published by the American College of Physicians.
posted 02.01.06
AAFP defines ideal retail health clinicsIf you haven’t heard of RediClinic, you will soon.
posted 01.09.06
