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Insurance Commissioner Raps Use of 'RAP' Docs
The Louisiana insurance commissioner, hospitals and physicians appear headed for a confrontation during the next legislative session over the billing practices of so-called RAP doctors, or radiologists, anesthesiologists and pathologists.
"You go into Our Lady of the Lake... with the expectation that you have full coverage subject to your deductible and co-pay, and then out of left field comes a bill for thousands of dollars from an anesthesiologist you've never heard of..."
TED GRIGGS |
Hospitals Spared Medicaid Cuts
So far, Louisiana's community hospitals have avoided a proposed change to the Medicaid program that the providers estimate would cut their funding by as much as $65 million over a two-year period.
However, the standoff between the hospitals and state health officials over the Medicaid program's prior authorization system may soon be resolved.
TED GRIGGS |
Hurricanes Delay EHR Program
The damage from hurricanes Gustav and Ike didn't stop at properties and coastal erosion. The storms also put a damper on efforts to recruit primary care physicians for a federally funded electronic health records demonstration project.
"There have been some applications in, but certainly we need a lot more," said Will J. Jackson, project manager for the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum.
TED GRIGGS |
Dr. Dennis Mello
No one ever has to plead with Dr. Dennis Mello to have a heart. It's an absolute necessity in his business, literally and figuratively.
As a pediatric cardiovascular surgeon, he often delivers the most serious diagnoses for the most fragile of patients. It's a job he does well, for a number of reasons.
PATRICIA GANNON |
Facility Focus: River Parishes Hospital: Growth, Growth, Growth!
They want to sell the old building, a 106 licensed-bed River Parishes Hospital (RPH) in LaPlace, La., built in 1982, and replace it with a brand new regional medical center. By September, the current hospital was already in the black for this year with a $1 million surplus, a positive signal of efficient operations for the owners, LifePoint Hospitals, Inc., according to Charlotte Dupré, CEO. "They are listening, and we're growing."
BARBARA MCCONNELL |
Legislative Affairs
During the 2008 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature, Sen. Ann Duplessis of New Orleans sponsored a Senate Resolution to create a healthy food retail study group. The first meeting of the study group was held at the Louisiana State Capitol on Tue., Oct. 21. The purpose of the study group is to develop recommendations for the creation of a statewide financing program to bring fresh food retailers into underserved areas and a plan to implement such.
CINDY BISHOP |
Mental Health Parity Becomes a Reality
Although all the attention was focused on the financial ramifications of October's Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (HR 1424), mental health providers across the country rejoiced that patients were receiving a bailout of their own in terms of breaking down barriers to much-needed care.
CINDY SANDERS |
New Treatments Offer Solace for Palliative Patients
Over the years, patients at the end stages of life were faced with few options. Most were treated with pain killers and sedatives to ease their pain and increase their comfort. But, new treatments offer options that relieve symptoms — and even prolong life.
The goal of palliative care is to improve the quality or lengthen the life of terminally ill patients.
LISA HANCHEY |
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