Legal

If patient information is stolen, practices must notify the affected patients and, in some cases, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and local media, according to new regulations that go into effect on September 23.

Nearly half of physicians believe that various off-label uses of prescription drugs are approved by the Food and Drug Administration, according to a national survey.

Efforts to thwart the increasing costs of healthcare cannot succeed without addressing the question of how much care to provide the terminally ill.

In a letter sent to executives, two top lawmakers demanded compensation information, for each year from 2003 to 2008, on health insurance company employees earning more than $500,000, including their bonuses, stock options, and other incentives.

A look at state legislation affecting primary care doctors.

Details of a $694-million program that will create a national extension service to help office-based physicians set up their health information technology have been announced by federal officials.

Insurers are signing on to support new chronic care patient education delivery systems that incorporate web-based and electronic technologies.

A look at state legislation affecting primary care doctors.

Superbills, encounter forms, and EOBs are not considered primary records and can be destroyed after they are input into the billing system.

The Stark law is relevant only in situations that involve a specific set of health services and patients who use Medicare.

Although Medicare is expected to offer a financial hardship exemption from electronic health records, the agency has offered scant details so far.

Eli Lilly and Co. has launched an online registry detailing recent payments the drugmaker awarded to physicians and other healthcare professionals.

Physicians need to update the information related to their own NPI numbers. Failure to do so could result in not being paid for some services.

EHR adoption has decreased in hospitals in states where privacy laws restrict the ability to disclose patient information, according to a study published in the journal Management Science.

For the third time, the Federal Trade Commission has delayed enforcement of its identity-theft protection system, or "Red Flags" Rule, which applies to physicians' offices.

Primary care doctors or staff neglect to inform patients of at least 1 out of every 14 abnormal test results.

A look at state legislation affecting primary care doctors.

The way to optimize your earnings is to optimize communication with your coding and billing staffs. It's a key to successful practice that cannot be overstated: Prioritize internal communication. Listen to your team. Provide feedback. Strategize together.

If you've never tried to negotiate payment schedules with your health plans-or if you haven't had success in the past-the tide may be turning in your favor. Consider it an unexpected result of the nation's growing shortage of primary care physicians.

There is a middle road wherein standards and expectations of how to practice in a whole new world of real-time data can be established, and it must be addressed so that those who use EHR systems can do their jobs without apprehension and fear.

Most states do give physicians discretion on whether to accept new Medicaid patients, just as you have the right to decide whether to take on new patients who aren't receiving public assistance.

Generally, the cost of writing letters is not included as a covered service under managed care contracts.

A look at state legislation affecting primary care doctors.

Patients are not required to provide their social security numbers, even if your practice asks them to do so.

About half of American doctors say they regularly give patients placebo treatments, usually over-the-counter analgesics or vitamins that won't really help their conditions.