Author: Kay Casey | Posted: 25. February 2013 08:50
As March 1 is just a week away, both chambers of Congress left for a week-long recess without reaching an agreement to avert the scheduled sequester. House and Senate leadership met over the weekend to discuss the sequester, however no agreement to avoid the automatic spending cuts was announced. [More]
Author: Ryan Paiva | Posted: 15. February 2013 11:02
SACRAMENTO, CA, February 15, 2013 – The City of Tulsa’s Information Technology (IT) Department recently awarded a contract to PCG Technology Consulting (PCG TC) to conduct a department-wide IT review. The project aims to improve quality and efficiency of Tulsa IT services by developing revised approaches to service delivery, organization and staffing, technologies used, and governance. The team will also undertake a benchmarking and peer review in a number of other cities and will review Tulsa’s IT services to determine candidates for outsourcing. [More]
Author: Sam Fish | Posted: 15. February 2013 11:00
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted additional guidance on the types of increased Federal Medicaid percentages (FMAPs) that will be available to states that expand their Medicaid programs pursuant to the ACA. The guidance was issued in the format, “Questions and Answers: Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, February 2013”. [More]
Author: Sam Fish | Posted: 15. February 2013 10:59
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on January 31, 2013 over 500 provider organizations that will be participating in its nationwide Bundled Payments for Care Improvement initiative, under which Medicare payments will be made for episodes of care through innovative payment models designed to incentivize improved coordination among providers and practitioners, reductions in service duplication, reductions in hospital readmissions, and better quality of care. The initiative is authorized under section 3021 of the Affordable Care Act. It will test four different models involving various service bundles, payment methods, and episodes of care (i.e., acute care hospital stays, acute care hospital stays plus post-acute care, and post-acute care separately) over a three year period. Many of the awardees elected a complete range of 48 medical conditions (e.g., acute myocardial infarction, coronary bypass surgery, congestive heart failure, stroke, pneumonia, renal failure, hip replacements, etc.) for which they will be seeking Medicare payments based on episodes of care. Thirty-two of the successful applicants will be ready to switch over to the new Medicare payment models as early as April 2013. Payment models include opportunities for shared savings, gradual introduction of financial risk, and quality reporting requirements. CMS will assess over the next three years which of the payment models tested under the initiative are most effective in improving care and reducing Medicare expenditures. Additional opportunities to participate in the nationwide initiative may be announced in coming weeks. Eighteen distinguished awardees already selected in Massachusetts include Baystate Medical Center, Lahey, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center of Boston, and Tufts Medical Center. [More]
Author: Patsy Crawford | Posted: 15. February 2013 10:55
On February 14, 2013, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) published in the Federal Register its final rule to amend the frequency requirement for obtaining parental consent to bill Medicaid (FR Vol. 78, No.31, pages 10525-10538). Under the regulations for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a local education agency (LEA) must, with limited exceptions, obtain parental consent prior to disclosing personally identifiable information maintained in a student’s education records, including information necessary for the LEA to bill Medicaid for services provided to the student. [More]
Author: Sam Fish | Posted: 30. January 2013 10:00
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, an entity within the Kaiser Family Foundation, published on January 23, 2013 (Publication Number 8401) its 12th annual 50-state survey of Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment, and cost-sharing policies. The study identified many gaps in Medicaid coverage across the U.S. On the positive side, the survey showed that coverage for children and pregnant women was stable. However, it showed that adults with no dependent children qualify for benefits in only nine states, and eligibility for adults with children was often far below the poverty line. [More]
Author: Sam Fish | Posted: 30. January 2013 10:00
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, an entity within the Kaiser Family Foundation, published on January 23, 2013 (Publication Number 8401) its 12th annual 50-state survey of Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment, and cost-sharing policies. The study identified many gaps in Medicaid coverage across the U.S. On the positive side, the survey showed that coverage for children and pregnant women was stable. However, it showed that adults with no dependent children qualify for benefits in only nine states, and eligibility for adults with children was often far below the poverty line. [More]
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Author: Patsy Crawford | Posted: 30. January 2013 09:36
In a January 24, 2013 news release, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) reported that a new poll shows that more Americans support, rather than oppose, Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). According to the poll, 52 percent of Americans believe that their states should expand Medicaid; 42 percent do not believe their states should expand Medicaid. [More]
Author: Patsy Crawford | Posted: 25. January 2013 10:48
On January 22, 2013, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) published a report showing increasing high school graduation rates and declining dropout rates nationwide. According to the report, high school graduation rates were at their highest level since 1974. [More]
Author: Patsy Crawford | Posted: 25. January 2013 10:46
House Education and the Workforce Committee Outlines Agenda for Education
On January 22, 2013, the House of Representatives Education and the Workforce Committee held its first organizational meeting in the 113th Congress. The Committee Chair, Representative John Kline (R-MN), outlined the Committee’s legislative agenda for education in the months ahead. In his remarks, Representative Kline stated that reauthorizing the No Child Left Behind Act remains a top priority, as it was in the 112th Congress; “It is our shared responsibility to craft thoughtful policies that will enhance state and local control, encourage innovation and flexibility, and end the administration’s convoluted waivers scheme.” He expressed the need to address the nation’s higher education system and enhance transparency with regard to student loans. He also said that he anticipates a robust conversation about ways to better protect students in the aftermath of the school shootings in Newtown, Connecticut that resulted in the killing of 20 first grade students and six school employees. In a January 16 statement, Representative Kline said that he will carefully review President Obama’s January 16 plan for reducing gun violence, which includes reinforcing background checks for all gun sales, banning military-style assault weapons, enhancing school security, and improving access to mental health services.
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