HHS’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health Information Technology have collaborated to develop model Notices of Privacy Practices (NPPs) for health care providers and health plans to use to communicate with their patients and plan members. The HIPAA Privacy Rule gives individuals a fundamental right to be […]
Read More...We’ve all been asking ourselves how will the IRS/DOL/HHS verify the income that consumers say they are earning? Will they only look at last year’s filed W-2/1040? Well, wait no longer. CMS issued guidance this week on just this issue. Their new FAQ describes a multi-step verification process that begins with the projected annual household […]
Read More...Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services took an unprecedented step in making public extensive hospital cost data. This action shocked healthcare providers, payers, and consumers alike. The massive file contains what is commonly referred to as “sticker price” for the 100 most common Medicare inpatient diagnostic related groups or DRGs. The data does not […]
Read More...Essential Health Benefits (“EHB”) is a set of health care service categories that must be covered by certain plans, starting in 2014*. Starting with plan years or policy years that began on or after September 23, 2010, health plans can no longer impose a lifetime dollar limit on spending for these services. All plans, except […]
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