Legal

The Department of Health and Human Services has furloughed more than half of its staff to comply with the government shutdown.

In line with a growing trend of consumers taking more responsibility for their health, more than 40% of American consumers say they would change doctors to gain full access to their electronic health record.

The group of U.S. Senators say the schedule for demonstrating Meaningful Use 2 is too aggressive and practices who are not ready should receive a one-year extension.

Last minute polls about the opening of the healthcare exchanges show that the public is still confused by mixed messages about the ACA.

Healthcare providers and payers are experimenting with a variety of new payment methods aimed at improving patient outcomes while lowering costs.

A reader complains that the reimbursement process has become overly complex and burdensome for providers.

A reader says the maintenance of certification process has not been shown to improve the quality of care doctors provide.

A reader, responding to a previous letter, says that senior citizens have paid for the healthcare benefits they receive.

Here's what you need to know about safeguarding your patients' health information under the new rules.

A reader tells fellow physicians they must learn to adapt to the new healthcare delivery environment.

A reader writes that defensive medicine now is included in the training doctors receive and is considered the standard of practice, making it difficult to eliminate from the culture of medicine.

A reader writes that the American Board of Medical Specialties is anti-competitive and wields too much power over the medical profession.

A provision of the Affordable Care Act may allow a form of "bare-bones" health plans to remain in effect.

Many organizations are seeking solutions to the impending primary care physician shortage, but should nurse practitioners fill the void?

The World Health Organization states that data for populations with a high-risk of flu complications should be reevaluated.

After they're implemented, health insurance exchanges will have the option to adopt policies that could reshape the financing and delivery of healthcare for years to come. Here's how.

Student loans, debt, underemployment and unemployment are factors in why #younginvincibles may not sign up for health insurance through exchanges.

An executive with the Commonwealth Fund believes that moving the U.S. healthcare system beyond fee-for-service payments requires three essential elements: the carrot, the stick and the muscle.

A letter writer argues for making Medicaid-Medicare reimbursement parity permanent.

With the Affordable Care Act, Americans thought they were getting a socialized safety net, but instead we have gotten a system that has been sold to private corporate interests.

Progress on repealing the sustainable growth rate formula has stalled in Congress due to disagreement over how to pay for it.

Many states are encountering problems in getting the higher Medicaid reimbursements to providers due to them under the Affordable Care Act.

Our coding expert explains the dos and dont's of billing Medicare for telehealth services.

Despite complaints about Medicare's shortcomings, the vast majority of office-based physicians continue to accept new patients covered by Medicare. Similarly, most Medicare beneficiaries are satisfied with their access to medical care.

Burnout and dissatisfaction are all-too-common among primary care physicians, but some practices have found ways to make medicine enjoyable again.