Archive for June 2010
Patients asked to leave medical practice after filing complaints for excessive billing
Two Hartford Medical Group patients have been told they are no longer welcome at the practice for complaining about fees charged to them above the payments by their insurers for routine physicals, which are 100% covered. Three complaints have been filed with the Attorney General’s office for excessive and unjustified billing; one patient was told…
Read MoreRisk adjusting rates webinar slides and video posted
you missed Wednesday’s webinar with Diane Laurent and David Williams of Milliman, the slides and video are now online. Diane and David described the methodologies to adjust rates based on each patient’s utilization history and diagnoses. Some models can predict future utilization and events, such as hospitalizations, for each patient providing an important tool to…
Read MoreImmediate impact of national health reform for CT
The White House has developed a list of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act to CT this year. The list includes small business tax credits, closing the Medicare donut hole, funding for early retirees, no lifetime limits on coverage, no rescissions, no pre-existing condition exclusions for children, all children to age 26 can stay…
Read MoreCT hospitals left out of Medicare bonuses
No CT hospitals are among hospitals nationally receiving Medicare bonuses under the new national health reform act. The bonuses were designed to equalize payments between high and low cost hospitals – none of CT’s 30 hospitals qualified as lower cost. The provision was prompted by research led by Dartmouth Atlas showing no link between high…
Read MoreNew report outlines long term cost of fully funding state retiree health benefits, Gov. Rell aggressively pursuing funding opportunities in national h
An early estimate to the state’s Post Employment Benefits Commission estimated that fully funding health benefits for the state’s 42,000 retired workers would average $1.9 billion over the next 28 years. The state now pays these bills as they arise; just over $490 million is budgeted for these costs in the fiscal year that starts…
Read MoreAre hospitals more dangerous in July?
Anyone who has worked around hospitals has heard the warning to stay away in July when new residents start. But is it true? The Wall Street Journal examines the evidence, which is mixed. The bottom line is that it’s always wise to be an informed consumer. For tips on making your hospital stay safer and…
Read MoreCT Health Information Exchange meeting
DPH, DSS, and eHealthCT are hosting a CT Health Information Exchange Leadership Meeting June 10th from 8:30am to 12:30pm at the CT Hospital Assoc. Offices in Wallingford. Anyone interested in health IT and how CT is progressing toward creating a network is welcome. Attendees will hear updates on the DSS Medicaid HIE pilot project, eHealthCT’s…
Read MoreTest your knowledge of CT’s individual insurance market
June’s CT Health Policy Webquiz tests your knowledge of CT’s non-group insurance market.
Read MoreObesity tools: CT middle of the pack in physical education report; improved home ec classes described
25.7 % of CT children are overweight or obese and policymakers are looking to the quality of physical education as one tool to address it. A new report by the National Association for Sport and Physical Education finds that CT’s state policies are better than some states and worse than others – we require physical…
Read MoreReport finds one in five CT residents have pre-existing conditions and risk of insurance denial
A new report by Families USA finds that 593,000 CT residents have been diagnosed with one or more condition that could result in denial of insurance coverage. In September, under the new national health reform act, insurers will be prohibited from denying coverage to the 44,200 CT children with pre-existing conditions, but the other half…
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