Less than one percent of Tennessee doctors prescribe medication electronically, but some health experts believe that Medicare payment incentives slated to start next year will spur more Tennessee doctors to do so. The number of Tennessee doctors who e-prescribe is expected to double this year, due to one-time state grants of $3,500 that are available to doctors who e-prescribe for two years, according to representatives from the state's eHealth Council.
The Massachusetts Division of Insurance is investigating sales of Evercare private Medicare plans that have sparked complaints from seniors about sales representatives using misleading and abusive marketing. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also announced it has stepped up oversight of Evercare, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group Inc. Evercare has fired seven independent insurance agents as a result of the complaints and is investigating 15 others for potential marketing abuses, according to the CMS.
A Bush administration proposal aimed at protecting healthcare workers who object to abortion, and to birth-control methods they consider tantamount to abortion, has escalated to a debate over the balance between religious freedom and patients' rights. The Department of Health and Human Services is reviewing a draft regulation that would deny federal funding to any hospital, clinic, health plan, or other entity that does not accommodate employees who want to opt out of participating in care that runs counter to their personal convictions. The draft proposal has sparked criticism by family planning advocates, women's health activists, and members of Congress who say the regulation would create overwhelming obstacles for women seeking abortions and birth control.
Fitch Ratings has downgraded West Penn Allegheny Health Systems' bond rating and Standard & Poor's cited "negative implications" in light of the announcement that the health system had overestimated revenue by $73 million. Fitch Ratings has downgraded West Penn's $758 million in outstanding series 2007A bonds from BB to BB- and gave the hospital system a negative outlook. Standard & Poor's gave a BB rating to the Allegheny County Hospital Development Authority bonds issued for West Penn Allegheny on Creditwatch "with negative implications pending a meeting with management in September," according to a release.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has announced a major healthcare rollout that he said puts Minnesota in the forefront of consumer-friendly medicine. Pawlenty said his goal is to give all Minnesotans access to online personal health portfolios by 2011. The plan would also establish health-reimbursement accounts for state employees that would allow them to load the money on a debit card; they could use it to tap pre-tax money put away for out-of-pocket expenses without collecting receipts and submitting claims.
Los Angeles County supervisors still refuse to release details about 17 employees who worked at Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital despite having serious criminal histories or lying about their records. After 16 of the workers were suspended, Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke said one of the employees had been convicted of rape. But neither the supervisors nor county health officials would address questions that might indicate whether patients were injured or placed at risk by the employees. Most of the public hospital closed after federal regulators determined that it did not meet minimum standards for patient care, but some outpatient clinic services continue. More than 700 employees remain at the site.