Legal

A reader argues in favor of removing the prohibition on balance billing,

Group Editor Daniel Verdon says tort reform is just one part of a complex problem encompassing providers, payers, physicians, and the justice system.

New payment models are not only challenging physicians financially, they are confusing. This article will clarify the most popular concepts coming into vogue and will also address some of the key contractual issues these models can generate.

Although a bill pending in the U.S. House of Representatives has drawn widespread support for repealing the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, groups representing primary care physicians have raised some concerns.

Although estimates for how much is spent on defensive medicine vary widely, experts agree that the dolllar amount is large.

Malpractice litigation’s most profound effect on the healthcare system doesn’t arise from malpractice insurance claims, case settlements, or court awards for damages, but from the defensive medicine it encourages.

New rules make it more important than ever to be proactive in ensuring compliance

With the starting date for stage 2 of the meaningful use program fast approaching, two major provider groups are asking for more flexibility in the program's requirements

The study's findings suggest that, to reduce defensive medicine, it may be more effective to focus on physicians' perceptions of legal risk and the factors driving those perceptions, rather than tort reform. Prior studies have shown physicians "greatly overestimate their risk of being sued," according to the study.

A series of 3-year studies of PCMHs in Pennsylvania conducted by Independence Blue Cross (IBC) found “significant reductions in medical costs for patients with chronic conditions treated in primary care practices that have transformed into medical homes."

Medical services that are billed at physician reimbursement levels but are performed by nonphysicians are drawing extra scrutiny from the federal government because they may be vulnerable to overutlization and expose patients to subpar care.

Older physicians break down technology adoption barriers, study says

For physicians who struggle to balance empathy with analytic thinking during patient visits, neuroscience researcher and brain-imaging expert Anthony Jack, PhD, has a somewhat comforting explanation: It's not your fault, it's your brain's.

Comparing data from 2000 to 2010, researchers found that over that time physicians prescribed more narcotics, made more referrals to other physicians and used more imaging procedures such as CT and MRI for patient visits involving routine back pain.

Doctors anxious about the Sunshine Act can download a new app to see exactly how the reporting process will work before results go public next year.

Physicians address costs, hours worked, and advancement in meaningful use objectivesin Medical Economics EHR Best Practices Study

New Medicare codes to pay for non-face-to-face visits for patients could go into effect in 2015.

More than half of the physicians questioned in the 2013 Physician Practice Preference Survey said compensation is their greatest career concern.

Is banding together with other medical practices to create an independent practice association the right choice for you?

While the Affordable Care Act (ACA) seeks to open healthcare access to millions of uninsured Americans, there are seemingly just as many unanswered questions about its impact on physician practices in terms of costs, payer rules, quality of reimbursements, increased collections, and other issues associated with an influx of new patients.

A House bill that would repeal the dreaded SGR formula increases Medicare reimbursement to physicians by 0.5% per year. But given that the annual increase is less than inflation, is it a fair amount?

What immediately jumps out about the list of residency programs that produce the lowest percentage of primary care graduates is that it includes some of the biggest names in healthcare: Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Brigham and Women's and plenty of others.

Many physicians recognize the need to control health costs in the U.S., but they're not eager to change how physicians are paid as a means of cost control, according to a new survey of physicians' attitudes about health cost containment published in JAMA.

The Patient-Centered Medical Neighborhood (PCMN) builds on the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) concept that’s designed to improve care coordination between primary care practices and specialists.

A new CMS proposal details two G-codes for primary care physicians for wellness and preventative care services and an expansion of telehealth services.