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LINCOLN—State tax revenues rebounded in May after a dismal April, a sign that Nebraska’s economy may be recovering and that lawmakers may not have to meet in an emergency session to again cut the budget.
The report released last week by the state Department of Revenue said net tax revenue beat projections by more than 5 percent in May. In April, net tax revenue was nearly 15 percent below official projections that set the baseline for the budget, leading to speculation that lawmakers may have to gather before the start of their regular session, which begins in January, to trim the budget.
Governor Dave Heineman said he didn’t anticipate calling a special session, but if revenues dropped in coming months he would consider it.
Read more.
— AP, June 10, 2010
BALTIMORE—The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has arranged a MIG Provider Audit Education Outreach to share information regarding the MIG Audits and the Nebraska MIG contractors. This outreach will be hosted by Robb Miller, Director of Field Operations for CMS Medicaid Integrity. Providers and professional organizations are invited to participate in the call on Wednesday, June 23, 2010 from 1:30 to 2:30 CST.
The number of participants is limited so you must pre-register by June 21, 2010, by sending your name, provider group or agency, e-mail address and phone number to Anne Harvey at
anne.harvey@Nebraska.gov. Please direct questions to Anne at
(402) 471-1718. Call in information will be e-mailed to registered participants. Also, please e-mail any MIG audit questions that you would like addressed on the call to Anne Harvey.
For general information on the MIG provider audits, please see Provider Bulletin 09-40 CMS Medicaid Integrity Group Provider Audits.
— Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, June 10, 2010
WASHINGTON—The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently
allocated $250 million in Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act funds to train new primary care providers. Part of $500 million included in the PPACA for prevention and public health in fiscal year 2010, the allocation includes $168 million to train more than 500 primary care physicians by 2015; $32 million to train more than 600 physician assistants; $30 million to transition more than 600 part-time nursing students to full-time; $15 million for 10 nurse-managed health clinics in medically underserved communities; and $5 million to help states plan and implement strategies to expand their primary care workforce by 10-25
percent over 10 years. "With these health care workforce investments, we have a unique opportunity to further strengthen our primary care workforce for the future," said Mary Wakefield, administrator of HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration.
— AHA News Now, June 16, 2010
 LINCOLN—Thomson Reuters recently honored 18 businesses across the nation for improving utilization and managing the cost of health care. They listed four categories of health care providers, payers, and employers across the nation. Thomson Reuters and its 50,000 employees across 100 nations, is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals.
Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center in Lincoln, Nebraska was among the honorees in the category of Performance Efficiency.
“Saint Elizabeth is pleased to be recognized among the nation’s leaders for managing health care costs,” stated Robert Lanik, Saint Elizabeth CEO. “For our patients and their families this is excellent news especially in light of the rising health care costs across the nation. We at Saint Elizabeth take great pride in being good stewards of our finances for our patients and their families.”
—
Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center, June 11, 2010
 OMAHA—Sally Ganem, wife of Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman, joined Methodist Health System officials and the community
cut the ribbon on Methodist Women’s Hospital during a public ceremony Saturday.
Methodist Women’s Hospital is the region’s first hospital devoted to excellence in
women’s health care. The five-story hospital has 126 beds, including 36 neonatal intensive care
unit beds. Its staff continues Methodist Hospital’s tradition as the preferred hospital for
delivering babies in the Omaha metropolitan area.
Read more.
— Methodist Women's Hospital press release, June 12, 2010
OMAHA—The Board of Regents on Friday approved the University of Nebraska 2011-2013 biennial capital construction budget that prioritizes a new facility for the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing Lincoln Division. The budget request will be submitted to the governor on September 15.
The estimated cost of the project is $16.3 million.
Read more.
—
UNMC news release, June 14, 2010
DENVER—More than 200 attendees, including hospital CEOs and trustees from nine states attended the 14th Annual Western Regional Trustee Symposium—Elevating the Standards of Hospital Governance—in Denver earlier this month. Steven J. Summer, president of the Colorado Hospital Association, welcomed attendees and presented Governing in an Era of Uncertainty.
In addition to networking with other trustees and health care leaders, the symposium featured nationally recognized experts on health care governance, including: John J. Nance, Larry Walker and William J. Ward. Rick Pollack, executive vice president for the American Hospital Association was also on hand to provide a federal update. Breakout sessions included presentations on health care payment systems, board succession planning, competency-based governance, financing, dealing with problematic doctors, board education and development, physicians and hospitals as allies, and the board’s role in assuring quality health care. In addition, the Trustee Toolkit
was offered for new trustees.
The 15th Annual Western Regional Trustee Symposium is scheduled for June 8-10,
2011 at the Embassy Suites in Omaha, Nebraska. For further information, visit
the Annual Western Regional Trustee Symposium Web site at
www.trusteesymposium.org.
—
Nebraska Hospital Association, June 18, 2010
WASHINGTON—On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate considered and rejected the plan put forth by Democratic leadership to address the physician payment fix and the funding for the FMAP extension. The latest information coming out of Washington indicates that the Senate will consider, and subsequently reject, the Republican version as well. In essence, this will require Senate leadership to consider a more scaled-back version that would appeal to a greater majority of Senators.
It is our understanding that the provisions of a scaled-back version would likely reduce the physician payment fix from 19 months to seven months.
While it is expected that some sort of physician payment fix will eventually happen, the inclusion of the FMAP extension is less certain. However, recent information indicates the chance of the FMAP extension to be included in the legislative package is greater today than it was earlier this week. The impact of the six-month FMAP
extension for our state is estimated at approximately $100 million. Also included in the discussion as a "pay-for" for the physician payment fix is the new Medicare requirement that would limit the ability for hospitals to separately bill for certain outpatient services provided 72-hours prior to an inpatient admission (known as the "72-hour rule").
The NHA also has obtained information released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
(CMS) regarding the handling of physician payments prior to the passage of a payment fix. CMS has instructed its contractors to continue to hold June 1 and later claims through Thursday, June 17. We will be sharing more information regarding the handling of these claims as it becomes available.
— The Nebraska Hospital Association, June 18, 2010
WASHINGTON—Business groups are criticizing the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for exploring electronic union balloting, charging that workers would be subject to the same kind of intimidation as if card-check legislation were approved.
At issue is a “request for information” released by NLRB that asks federal contractors how they would administer a union electronic voting system. The notice asks contractors to provide information on how they would implement a system, such as how much it would cost.
Read more.
— The Hill, June 18, 2010
WASHINGTON—The Justice Department has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit by 20 states challenging President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. The motion says the U.S. District Court in Pensacola, FL, lacks subject-matter jurisdiction over some claims raised in the suit. The motion also says other parts of the lawsuit fail to state claims upon which relief can be granted. A key issue in the suit by the states, National Federation of Independent Business, and several individual taxpayers is whether the federal government can require individuals to purchase health care insurance and fine those who fail to do so.
Read more.
— AP/Washington Post, June 18, 2010
WASHINGTON—A Republican effort to repeal the individual mandate in the
Democrats’ health care overhaul failed Tuesday afternoon on a largely partisan
vote. Representative Dave Camp of Michigan, the top Republican on the Ways and
Means Committee, called for the repeal under a “motion to recommit”—a
parliamentary tool often used by the minority party to change bills on the House
floor. Never mind that the bill Camp is using for this maneuver is a small
business tax bill—Republicans wanted to get Democrats on the record once again
saying they back a law that requires uninsured Americans to purchase health
insurance. Read
more.
— Politico,
June 15, 2010
Over the course of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services—Premier Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration, which ended last year and serves as a partial template for Medicare's new pay-for-performance initiatives, the bar for earning bonuses rose very quickly.
"By the end, to be in the top two deciles you had to be near perfection on every measure," says Linda Gerbig, vice president of performance at Texas Health Resources, a 13-hospital system based in Arlington.
Read more.
—
HHN Magazine,
June 2010 issue
Ensuring Compliance with The Joint Commission Record of Care/Medical Record (CL)
June 22, 2010
– Webinar
Medicaid Integrity Group (MIG) Provider Audit Educational Outreach
June 23, 2010
– Conference Call
Health Care & Education Reconciliation Act of 2010: Implications for Hospitals
June 24, 2010
– Webinar
Second Annual Foundation for Annie Jeffrey Golf Tournament
June 25, 2010 – Osceola
York General Health Care Services Auxiliary Charity Golf Tournament
July 30, 2010 – York
Charity Golf Tournament
to benefit
Jefferson Community Health Center
August 6, 2010 – Fairbury
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