Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Medicare Extends Moratorium On Auditors' Challenges To Hospitals' Billing For Short Stays
CQ Healthbeat: CMS Aligns Timelines On Hospital Short-Stay Pay Disputes
Hospitals this week won another reprieve from oversight of their billing for short hospital stays when Medicare officials extended a moratorium already in place for contractors intended to scrutinize the spending, which is a major area of concern for the program’s finances. Congress had blocked recovery audit contractors, or RACs, from challenging hospitals on short-stay claims through Oct. 1. Hospital officials sometimes call the RACs bounty hunters because they are paid by contingency fees based on their success in challenging claims made for Medicare payments. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Wednesday extended the moratorium through Dec. 31. (Young, 8/17)
Reuters: Hospitals Lose Appeal Of Medicare Reimbursement Challenge
A federal appeals court has rejected a $24 million lawsuit by 41 New England hospitals challenging the way the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services calculated the Medicare reimbursement rates in 2006 and 2007. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett, writing for a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, wrote Friday that federal law gives HHS "flexibility and discretion" in calculating the reimbursement rate for different geographic areas based on local wages. (Pierson, 8/17)
The Washington Post: FDA Warns Makers Of Medical Scopes In Wake Of Deadly ‘Superbug’ Outbreaks
The Food and Drug Administration has sent warning letters to manufacturers of a specialized medical scope that has been associated with outbreaks of a deadly “superbug” virus, saying the companies failed to adequately report problems with the devices and, in some instances, failed to ensure that they could be cleaned properly between uses. (Dennis, 8/17)
