Arizona State University (ASU) researchers have spent the past two years in collaboration with the Mayo Clinic trying to formulate viable solutions for ineffective patient access management that often hinders the delivery of care.
ASU...Arizona News
Starting Oct. 1 therapy payments to nursing facilities will shift to a value-based model, emphasizing patient needs over the amount of services provided. The Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM), a more individualized approach, aims to reduce inflated billing by basing payments on patient's medical characteristics.
The new approach...Toolbox
Medicare patients and providers have long struggled with interpreting the three-day rule. Last month, a trial began after a class action lawsuit on behalf of patients was brought against the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) because of the rule.
What is the three- day rule? How does it work? Why hasn’t this...
Arizona’s effort to fight homelessness is being bolstered by a major increase in funds allocated to the state’s Housing Trust Fund. If the budget bump is successful in housing the homeless, Arizona’s health care system may get some relief. Daniel G. Garrett works with Homeward Bound of Asheville (North Carolina), an organization...
Grants from the Health Resources & Services Administration to Creek Valley Health Clinic in Colorado City, MIHS (Valleywise Health) and Terros in Phoenix are designed to improve access to affordable, quality and cost-effective primary healthcare services to Arizona's underserved communities and vulnerable populations.
MIHS will...
A federal judge sentenced a Miami mogul to 20 years in prison and $207 million in restitutions for committing what prosecutors are calling the largest healthcare fraud scheme in America’s history.The culprit in this case is 50-year-old Philip Esmores, the mastermind behind a network of nursing homes and healthcare facilities that...
Grants from the Health Resources & Services Administration to Creek Valley Health Clinic in Colorado City, MIHS (Valleywise Health) and Terros in Phoenix are designed to improve access to affordable, quality and cost-effective primary healthcare services to Arizona's underserved communities and vulnerable populations.
MIHS will...
National Nurse United, America's largest union and professional association of registered nurses, are urging management to invest in nursing staff and says the planned strike is the first of its kind in the history of Arizona and Florida.
Local reporting has the strike scheduled at Tenet-affiliated facilities: Tucson's St. Joseph's...
Arizona will receive $2.1 million annually for the next five years to facilitate improved access to care for pregnant and postpartum women living in areas considered maternity care deserts because of the OB-GYN shortage.
Phoenix is ranked 14th for most at risk of an obstetrician and gynecologist (OB-GYN) shortage with a concerning...
The two private-equity backed companies own physician practices and staff emergency rooms across the country and oppose what it claims are, "insurance-industry backed proposals for government rate setting," to solve the problem of surprise medical bills.
The group, Doctor Patient Unity, has spent more than $28 million on television,...
The State of Arizona’s Department of Insurance (AzDOI) technology team warning customers and subscribers to be aware of internet scams that involve email messages falsely claiming to be from the NAIC and notifying recipients of a complaint.
This phishing scam targets insurance professionals claiming that the National...
Maricopa Integrated Health System and the Arizona Public Health Association are joining forces to warn Arizona residents about the dangers of vaping. The organizations also urged health care professionals to begin screening patients for vaping related illnesses.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported last week...
Arizona's Medicaid Program, the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), is implementing work requirements beginning the fall of 2020 in Maricopa, Pima and Yuma counties. Eventually, nearly 120,000 Arizona residents on Medicaid will have to prove they are either working, studying or volunteering in order to continue...
Tuesday, doctors at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix announced they had implanted a pacemaker-like “deep brain stimulation” device into the first of more than 200 patients for an international study.
The first patient in this Phase III trial – called ADvance II – underwent surgery on Sept. 9 to complete the...
Healthcare information technology giant Cerner has proven to be a favorite among health systems when selecting electronic health records (EHRs) as it recently secured a spot in the Mayo Clinic and Oxford University partnership and three new rural health system.
As Mayo Clinic establishes its first health facility in the United...
During its new product event on Sept. 10, Apple unveiled the fifth generation Apple Watch along with the updated iPhone and iPad. The company also announced partnerships with the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association for three research studies aimed at assessing the watch’s capability to monitor certain...
An investigation into the University of Virginia Health System (UVA), a taxpayer supported and state-funded nonprofit hospital, found 36,000 lawsuits filed against patients since 2012, seeking more than $106 million in unpaid bills.
According to the Kaiser Health News (KHN) analysis, the health system has been seizing patient wages,...
Another reason to be careful who you do business with. Last week the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule centered around expanding the agency’s jurisdiction to prevent fraudulent payments by keeping corrupt providers out of federal programs and creating new revocation and denial authorities.
The...
Despite a settlement almost five-years-old, lawyers representing inmates in the Parsons v. Ryan suit filed a request for receivership, citing the Arizona Department of Corrections’ (ADC) failure to comply with previous rulings as impetus for the sanction.
Attorneys from the Prison Law Office (PLO) and the American Civil Liberties...
Iora Health, which specializes in primary care services for traditional Medicare beneficiaries and Humana Medicare Advantage members, announces that it will open 11 new centers in Texas, Georgia and Arizona.
Iora invests in preventive care, using primary care teams to focus on outcomes. Their relationship with Humana is built on...
This CMS database helps healthcare providers to make informed decisions about their service locations and the beneficiary population they serve.
Saturation is the density of providers of a particular service within a defined geographic area relative to the number of beneficiaries receiving that service in the area. The data can be used...
The study in the September issue of the journal Health Affairs found that even though private insurers also reported shorter SNF stays, there are no significant differences in readmission rates.
One of the study's significant findings: Medicare hip replacement FFS charges were double the amount of those with private insurance. One of...
Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Pathways to Success program as of July 1 were concerned about complying with federal guidelines mandating each Medicare beneficiary receive a notice that their PCP participates in the ACO prior to their first primary care visit.
The...
After reviewing quarterly reports from the combined company, Judge Richard Leon signed off on the $70 billion merger agreement brokered last year by the U.S. Department of Justice and nearly 20 state attorneys general; the deal included Aetna divesting Medicare drug plans to WellCare Health Plans.
In early August, the American...
Walmart is slated to open its first standalone primary care clinic, the “Walmart Health” pilot care center, in Georgia on Sept. 13. Patients will be able to receive lab tests, immunizations, dental care, optometry, audiology and behavioral health services.
The announcement comes on the heels of CVS’ “HealthHub,” which...
The Hertel Report
