Legal

National and state organizations representing physicians were among 118 organizations that sent a lettter to House and Senate leaders supporting equality of Medicaid and Medicare rates for primary care services.

Connecticut AG sues Health Net of Connecticut in January for failing to secure private medical records and financial information of 446,000 enrollees.

With healthcare fraud now estimated to be a $100-billion-a-year enterprise, the federal government has developed new tools to aggressively pursue fraud.

Dermatologists and oncologists are the physician specialist groups most likely to communicate with patients online, according to the latest physician report, "Physicians in 2012: The Outlook on Health Information Technology," from pharmaceutical and healthcare market research company Manhattan Research.

Two academic medical centers and one rural hospital will be recognized with Stage 7 awards, representing attainment of the highest level of electronic health record adoption as judged by HIMSS Analytics, at the 2010 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society annual meeting in March in Atlanta.

Healthcare cost control is the overarching theme for 2010, according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Health Research Institute's "Top 10 health industry issues in 2010" report.

Electronic health record systems hold much promise for the future of healthcare, but improvements are needed before their benefits can be fully realized, according to two commentaries published in the February 3 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The watchdog group Patient Privacy Rights has released its first personal health record privacy report card in an effort to educate and protect consumers.

The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology is updating its electronic health record technology certification programs to conform to the interim final rule recently released by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Eighty-five percent of healthcare providers believe that their ambulatory electronic health record software will let them meet the 2011 meaningful use deadlines being considered by the federal government, according to a report from research firm KLAS.

In-flight medical events are in an area of medicine that is often overlooked but occurring more and more.

The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology has announced the first electronic health record products to be certified under its CCHIT Certified 2011 Comprehensive and Preliminary ARRA 2011 programs.

Tighter government control and expanded regulation are likely to occur in the near future, even if fundamental healthcare reform doesn't materialize.

Going bare, or going without malpractice insurance, can leave you exposed to financial disaster.

The Medical Group Management Association says many medical groups may not achieve "meaningful use" and will not qualify for the EHR incentives if the criteria are too burdensome.

The Connecticut attorney general's office is investigating the loss of health information of 446,000 state residents by managed care company Health Net and the company's six-month notification delay.

Congressional Budget Office notes few Americans would enroll in public health insurance option if it were available.

Practices with 20 or fewer physicians may end up being exempted from the new "Red Flag" rule which requires physicians' practices and other businesses to spot and report identity theft.

When a U.S. resident is sent abroad for treatment by a managed car company, does a patient have any available recourse if he or she is a victim of negligence?

The California office of administrative law rejected a proposal that would have expanded the scope of practice of psychologists and potentially all other health care practitioners.

Companies that work with healthcare organizations and handle private patient information are largely unprepared to meet the new data breach-related obligations included in the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act.

Senate shelved bill that would have cut out the method which CMS uses to calculate physician fees

HITECH has new requirements regarding business associates and notification of patients regarding breaches of unsecured protected health information.

In the past decade, there was a sharp increase in medical liability premiums, but recently, malpractice insurance has started to level off, indicating a potential new trend.

Practices making the plunge into electronic health records prior to the final definition of "meaningful use" should require the EHR contract guarantee the system will meet those requirements.

Pfizer allegedly promoted four drugs for off-label indications and caused false claims to be submitted to government health care programs for uses that were not medically accepted indications and therefore not covered by those programs.

A look at state legislation affecting primary care doctors.

A rule proposed in the health reform legislation would allow health insurers to sell plans across state lines.

Exceptions that permit referrals under Stark are complex, therefore determining a violation has happened and the preferred way of managing are also difficult.

As you prepare to start a new job, read your employment contract carefully, make sure you understand all of its provisions, and, if necessary, let a lawyer have a peek.