Medicare Pricing Frozen As Congress Leaves Town (Washington Post) With congressional leaders engaged in heated brinkmanship, the Bush administration yesterday gave a reprieve to thousands of doctors expecting to get hit Tuesday with a 10.6 percent cut in Medicare payments.
Medicare Part D plagues system (The Barre Montpelier Times Argus) BARRE -- It's no secret that Medicare Part D, the private-sector prescription drug program that was rolled out in 2006, got off to a rocky start. Elderly beneficiaries struggled to make sense of a multitude of bewildering plans. Pharmacists phoned Medicare for information and endured interminable waits. Many patients whose prescriptions had been paid for under Medicaid couldn't get them filled. ...
City hospital in jeopardy of fund loss (The Williamsport Sun-Gazette) U.S. Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa., has vowed to revive legislation that restores Williamsport Hospital's adjusted funding for Medicare dollars. The bill, barely defeated this week by the Senate, included the Section 508 Medicare issue as well as a number of other measures designed to help rural and other health care institutions, he said. "Part of it dealt with the 508 legislation," he said.
Medicare changes help flood, tornado victims (The Gazette) A public health emergency declaration in Iowa by Mike Leavitt, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, gives Medicare more flexibility in meeting health care needs following recent flooding and tornadoes.Many normal operating procedures will be relaxed to make sure patients receive quick, proper care. Most of the temporary changes in rules will last for the duration of the ...