Oct. 31, 2005

    



 

 

Scientific Session
• Let the Countdown Begin!

LEGISLATIVE/REGULATORY
• Budget Packages Move Forward in House, Senate
• Senate Passes Labor, HHS Spending Bill
• Health IT Bill Introduced In House
QUALITY
• ACC, Medicare Collaborate On ICD Registry
• CMS Announces Voluntary Reporting Program
Safety
• ICD Companies Subpoenaed
Scientific Session
Let the Countdown Begin!
The early bird registration deadline for the ACC’s 55th Annual Scientific Session (ACC.06) and the inaugural Innovation in Intervention: i2 Summit 2006 is November 7. Join the ACC for one or both groundbreaking meetings in Atlanta from Saturday, March 11, through Tuesday, March 14. Don’t miss this opportunity to network with cardiovascular colleagues from around the world. Click here to register online.
LEGISLATIVE/REGULATORY
Budget Packages Move Forward in House, Senate
The Senate Budget Committee last week approved a budget reconciliation package that includes new Medicare spending, including $10.8 billion for a one percent update in physician payments in 2006, which is offset by nearly $19 billion in Medicare cuts. The package now goes to the Senate floor for a vote this week. If approved by the Senate, CQ Today reports that a fierce fight is expected in a conference committee should the current House and Senate packages “emerge intact.” Currently in the House, the Energy and Commerce Committee has approved a Budget Reconciliation package that cuts $9.5 billion from Medicaid over five years, while the Ways and Means Committee has approved a package that includes $8 billion in savings. Neither package includes any Medicare spending or cuts. Click here for more.
Senate Votes on Health Programs Funding
The full Senate last week passed the Fiscal Year 2006 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (Labor-HHS) Appropriations Bill, which provides funding for the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s State Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program, and the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices Program. The legislation, the largest of the spending bills Congress passes each year, includes $146 billion for non-entitlement programs and about $458 billion for benefits such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. The House approved its version of the bill earlier this year. The legislation now goes to House-Senate negotiations. For more, click here.
Health IT Bill Introduced In House
House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chair Nancy Johnson (R-CT) and Commerce Health Subcommittee Chair Nathan Deal (R-GA) introduced a bill (H.R. 4157) last week that would allow the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop national medical privacy standards and loosen restrictions on the donation of information technology equipment to physicians. Under the legislation, HHS would have 18 months to study state and federal privacy laws to determine whether a set of uniform standards is needed. Should a single set of federal laws be recommended, Congress would have three years to enact the standards, or HHS would have the authority to create a uniform Health IT system. The legislation would also codify the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. For more information, click here.
QUALITY
ACC, Medicare Collaborate On ICD Registry
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced last week that the ACC’s National Cardiovascular Data Registry’s (ACC-NCDR) ICD RegistryTM will become the new mandated data registry for more than 1,300 hospitals nationwide beginning April 1, 2006. Data from the registry will be used to help improve care for Medicare beneficiaries who may be at risk of sudden cardiac death. Hospitals have until Jan. 1, 2006 to begin the enrollment process. For more information about the ICD RegistryTM, go to www.accncdr.com.
CMS Announces Voluntary Reporting Program
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) last week announced the creation of the Physician Voluntary Reporting Program, which asks physicians to voluntarily report information about the quality of care they provide to Medicare beneficiaries. Beginning in January 2006, participating physicians will report on an initial group of 36 evidence-based quality measures developed by a collaborative group of physicians, physician organizations and other experts, including the ACC. Seven of the measures were developed by ACC/AHA in collaboration with others such as the Physicians Consortium for Performance Measurement. CMS will collect the information through the use of a dedicated set of Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes, called G-codes, which will supplement the claims data doctors currently submit to CMS. In return, CMS will provide feedback reports to participating physicians that can assist in improving data accuracy, reporting rate, and clinical care. Physicians will also have the opportunity to provide input on ways to improve the reporting process and the usefulness of quality measures. Moving forward, the ACC will work with CMS to ensure that the program supports delivery of quality care while minimizing the administrative burden of reporting such information. Click here for the CMS release.
Safety
ICD Companies Subpoenaed
Guidant Corp., Medtronic and St. Jude Medical have received subpoenas from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston for documents related to their manufacturing of pacemakers and implantable defibrillators (ICDs). Guidant has also received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney in Minneapolis relating to the ICD models the company recalled in June because of potential problems. On a related note, Guidant last week announced that it plans to start issuing periodic reports that highlight for each ICD model the number of confirmed failures that prevented the units from delivering critical patient therapy. Previously the company only reported the total number of product malfunctions, rather than separating those that posed high risks from those of lesser concern.
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