Limiting Liability Exposure and Protecting
Hospital Medicare Reimbursement
***Effective Oct. 1, CMS Will Not Pay for Preventable
Injuries — Private Insurers Follow Suit***
CD of Teleconference with Q&A
Click here for program outline
Conducted on Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Now available on CD
Sponsored by Health Law Week, Hospital Litigation Reporter,
and New York Health Law Update
Health Law Teleconference Advisory Board
Beginning in October, Medicare will no longer pay the costs of treating selected preventable hospital-acquired conditions, and the Medicare statute prohibits hospitals from billing patients for these costs. Private insurers WellPoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Aetna are following Medicare's lead.
A recent study on patient safety found that the Medicare program paid $8.8 billion from 2004 to 2006 for medical errors. During this period, medical errors were made in three percent of all hospital admissions and resulted in almost a quarter of a million preventable deaths.
Questions loom: Will the new policy allow CMS to determine the appropriate standard of care and define “preventable error” in medical malpractice cases? Will the new policy toughen pre-admission screenings by hospitals — and open the door to Americans With Disabilities Act claims?
Listen as our authoritative panel of health law attorneys and a CMS adviser examines the likely impact of the new CMS policy on hospitals and provides insights into best practices to limit liability exposure and to protect Medicare reimbursements.
The panel included:
Thomas Valuck, MD, MHSA, JD, Medical Officer and Senior Adviser to the Director of the Center for Medicare Management, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service (CMS), Baltimore. He advises the director of the Center for Medicare Management at CMS on clinical and policy issues related to Medicare's payment systems, particularly pay for performance.
Sean P. Dwyer, Partner, Havkins Rosenfeld Ritzert & Varriale, Mineola, N.Y. He defends hospitals in serious liability claims, including medical malpractice claims. He has litigated hundreds of civil and criminal matters and frequently lectures on trial and litigation issues.
William H. Maruca, Partner, Fox Rothschild, Pittsburgh. He has extensive experience in healthcare law, including Medicare compliance. He counsels hospitals and physicians on reimbursement disputes. He is a frequent speaker on healthcare topics.
The panel reviewed these and other key questions:
- What types of medical errors are covered under the new CMS policy?
- Is a preventable error considered negligence per se under the new policy?
- How can healthcare providers limit their liability exposure for patient mistakes?
- What are the best practices for providers to follow to protect their Medicare provider status?
- Can private insurers use a strict liability test for medical errors to deny payment?
TELECONFERENCE CD
Purchase a CD-ROM of the full conference proceedings, including Q&A and PDF files of all handouts (available 10 days after the program).
- Regular Price - $297 (plus $9.45 S&H)
- With Teleconference Registration – an additional $75 (plus $9.45 S&H)
CLE credit is available for an additional $65 each for attorneys seeking CLE credits for NY or CT.
Other states may grant CLE credits for listening to this CD - check with your state about applying for self-study credit on CD-listening.