Health Care Law Blog
Michigan State University (“MSU”) currently requires that uninsured students obtain health insurance as part of its fee structure. This requirement impacts approximately 14 percent of students. While this requirement is aligned with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s (“PPACA”) individual mandate, the requirement may negatively impact MSU’s ability to raise tuition.
On April 26, 2012, the State of Michigan submitted its Integrated Care Proposal (Pilot Program) to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), for review and approval. The Pilot Program is Michigan’s plan to jointly manage the care of approximately 200,000 residents who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. The Pilot Program submitted to CMS is not yet available on the Internet for public review. However, the Department of Community Health has prepared a list of FAQs about the Program on its website.
Previously, the Foster Swift Health Care Law Blog notified you of an NLRB requirement for employers to display notices about employees' rights to organize a union. The notice requirement was delayed, and employers were not required to post the notice until April 30, 2012. On April 17, 2012, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia granted an emergency motion for injunction pending appeal and for expedited consideration related to the notice requirement. This was discussed in Foster Swift’s recent Employment, Labor & Benefits E-News. In particular, it is important to note that this court's decision means that employers are not required to post the notice until the court rules on the NLRB's authority to promulgate such a requirement. Oral arguments on this issue are expected to occur in September, 2012. Foster Swift's Employment, Labor & Benefits E-News and Health Care Law Blog will keep you posted on this issue.
On April 16, 2012, the Office of Regulatory Reinvention (“ORR”) issued a report to Governor Snyder proposing the deregulation of 18 occupations and the elimination of 9 occupational boards. Of particular interest to Michigan health care providers are the recommendations for deregulation of dietitians and nutritionists; ocularists; respiratory care providers; and speech pathologists. The report also recommended elimination of the following, health-care relevant occupational boards: Board of Dietetics and Nutrition, Board of Occupational Therapy, Board of Respiratory Care, Board of Speech Language Pathology, and Osteopathic Medicine Advisory Board.
Recently, health care organizations have been inquiring about employment tax issues, and more specifically, the proper tax classification of their workers. Questions include whether to classify medical directors, such as hospice medical directors, as employees versus independent contractors.
The Departments of the Treasury, Labor and Health and Human Services (collectively, the "Departments") recently published the final regulation (the "Regulation") with regard to the Summary of Benefits and Coverage ("SBC") requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("PPACA"). The Regulation implements certain disclosure requirements in order to help individuals and health plans better understand their medical coverage as well as other coverage options. Many liken the SBC to the summary plan description for retirement plans.
On March 8 and 9, 2012, the members of Foster Swift's Health Care Law Group attended the 18th Annual Health Law Institute. This two-day institute, which is co-sponsored by the Institute for Continuing Legal Education and the Health Care Law Section of the Michigan State Bar, focused on recent legal developments in health care law. Specific topics addressed at this year's Health Law Institute included:
The Office of Inspector General ("OIG") for the Department of Health and Human Services recently issued an alert, which warned that “physicians who reassign their right to bill the Medicare program and receive Medicare payments by executing the CMS-855R application may be liable for false claims submitted by entities to which they reassigned their Medicare benefits.” The OIG stressed that physicians remain liable for claims submitted using their provider numbers, even when the claims for services are submitted by another party under a contractual arrangement. The potential for liability also exists for other types of practitioners who enter into reassignment agreements.
In late 2011, the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it would take up four issues regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("PPACA"). The Court is expected to hear oral arguments in late March of 2012 and provide a decision in June of 2012.
Three of the four issues to be reviewed by the Court center around PPACA's Individual Mandate. The Individual Mandate (also known as the minimum coverage provision) requires that, beginning in 2014, individuals who fail to maintain a minimum level of health insurance coverage for themselves and their dependents pay a penalty, calculated in part on the basis of the individual's household income as reported on the individual's federal income tax return. This is likely the most controversial provision of PPACA.
The four issues to be considered by the Court are as follows:
If you are already a subscriber to Foster Swift's health care law blog, you might be interested in Foster Swift's Health Care Law E-News as well. These newsletters provide an in-depth discussion on specific issues that are of interest to those in the health care industry. See what the latest Health Care Law E-News has to offer.
