Each week, Chiropractic OnLine Today will search the previous weeks top news items dealing with the health industry. Stay on top of the weeks top items, right here!Current Health News Links"News Headlines thru the week of 8/1/2005 include": Menu
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Return to MenuNY Governor Patkai Signs CE Legislation - 8/5/03
Governor George Pataki on August 5, 2003, signed into law A.978/S.316.b, legislation that requires chiropractors to acquire continuing education credit as a condition for licensure re-registration. This law goes into effect January 1, 2004. Many other professions in the state including dentists, podiatrists, pharmacists, attorneys and others already have a CE requirement in place. New York joins 47 other states that require chiropractic continuing education.
Each chiropractor licensed in New York, excepting those not engaged in chiropractic practice, is required to complete thirty-six (36) hours of acceptable formal continuing education credit per triennium.
New York Chiropractic College Gets Regent's Approval: Becomes Upstate New York's First Acupuncture Program - 12/27/02 New York Chiropractic College of Seneca Falls, NY, just received approval from the New York State Board of Regents to establish upstate New York's first Master of Science programs in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Amending the school's charter to reflect its new programs, New York Chiropractic College will now offer coursework leading to degrees of Masters of Science with majors in Acupuncture and Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, and the Bachelor of Professional Studies degree with a major in Life Sciences. These are in addition to its long standing, highly regarded Doctor of Chiropractic degree program. Graduates from either Masters degree program will fulfill a requirement for eligibility to take state licensure examinations for the practice of acupuncture. REVISED MEDICARE ABN - 9/18/02 As part of its Beneficiary Notification Initiative, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a new Advance Beneficiary Notice (ABN) form along with new instructions. After September 30, 2002, your old ABN forms (also known as a "waiver") will no longer be acceptable and will not protect you from liability. CMS has designed the new form to be more beneficiary- friendly, more readable and understandable, and with patient options more clearly defined. PLEASE NOTE: On the new form there are only three places that may be "customized." Providers are permitted to customize the header, the "Items or Services" box, and the "Because" box. Other than this, NO CHANGES may be made to the form. It is important that every doctor of chiropractic read the new instructions carefully and download the new form. Both the instructions (found in PM AB-02-114) and the new form (in PDF format) may be obtained at http://cms.gov/medlearn/refabn.asp. AOL Health Reports - 4/30/02
Many New Drugs Have Side Effects CHICAGO (AP) - One in five new drugs has serious side effects that do not show up until well after the medicine has received government approval, according to a study that exposes what one researcher calls an alarming game of medical Russian roulette.
Group Warns of Soccer Head Injuries WASHINGTON (AP) - As children across America put on their shin guards and head to the fields, the Institute of Medicine is reminding parents that soccer can be dangerous, leading to concussions and other head injuries. Concussions are common in soccer, and coaches and parents need better training to identify and treat young athletes and prevent them from suffering further, life-threatening head injuries, the institute said. ``A lot of people, parents anyway, found soccer more appealing for their kids because they saw it as less dangerous than football,'' said Janet Joy, who prepared the review. ``But the fact is, concussions are just as frequent in soccer.'' Players can get concussions from heading the ball, colliding, running into goalposts or hitting their heads on the ground. A player who sustains a second concussion before recovering from the first may suffer brain swelling that could lead to brain damage and death. ACA EVP Weekly Report HIPAA FRAUD ALERT - Received 3/6/02 - The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently published a National Medicare Fraud Alert (# 2001-07) concerning individuals or groups posing as Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA ) auditors and/or other government officials. Please be advised that there are currently no HIPAA audits being conducted. Providers should never allow individuals who fail to produce identification and proper documentation from an authorized auditing entity to gain access to the provider's computers, medical records, billing information, and other sensitive data. Should you be aware of recent attempts or become aware of future attempts by individuals to gain access to provider facilities and/or information, please contact Don Redden, Manager, Wisconsin Physicians Service Benefit Integrity, at (608) 301-2612. BMJ - Effectivness of OTC Cough Medicine BMJ 2002;324:329 (9 February) -- Conclusion: Over the counter cough medicines for acute cough cannot be recommended because there is no good evidence for their effectiveness. Even when trials had significant results, the effect sizes were small and of doubtful clinical relevance. Because of the small number of trials in each category, the results have to be interpreted cautiously. Attourney Rob Sherman List from 7/31/01 ARLINGTON, Va., July 31 /PRNewswire/ -- A federal judge has ruled that the lawsuit of the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) and the Virginia Chiropractic Association (VCA) -- together with numerous doctors of chiropractic and their patients -- against Trigon Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Virginia, one of the largest health plans in the country, may move forward. In a significant decision, Judge James P. Jones of the U.S. District Court in Abingdon, VA, ruled that 6 of the 8 counts against Trigon, if proven, are sufficient to support a judgment.... Letter to the Editor from 4/04/2001 When Simple Actions Ravage Arteries Read COT Contributor Dr. Louis Sportelli's Letter to the Editor of the NY Times in response to an article of the above name printed in the NY Times. See April's Education Corner for more information. InteliHealth Professional from 1/02/2001 Feds May Release Info On Doctors NEW YORK (AP) - Federal health officials say they will soon allow Medicare beneficiaries to obtain information about doctors who may have made errors, a move that reverses a policy that has kept medical mistakes secret for more than 20 years, The New York Times reported Tuesday. http://ipn.intelihealth.com/IPN/ihtIPN?st=23883&t=7223&c=307349 Attourney Rob Sherman List from 10/1/00 Begining October 2, 2000 on Fox FX or The Health Network (depends on where you are). Triad Healthcare has sponsored a documentary on Healthcare. It will air 5 times next week at 9:30PM and 12:30AM EST. The show is CUTTING EDGE MEDICAL REPORT. It is a great one half hour show, featuring co-host Buzz Aldrin and takes into account chiropractic and other health care and is very informative and interesting.
From NEJM - 7/14/00
From CNN.com - 6/4/00 This year's event targets the marketing practices of tobacco companies, which WHO said entice people to smoke by glamorizing the activity in movies, television, sports and music. Children are especially targeted, WHO director-general Gro Harlem Brundtland said. "To those young and not so young who might be debating whether or not to start smoking," Brundtland said in a statement, "I would like to say, 'Tobacco kills -- don't be duped.''' In an event Tuesday, Brundtland warned there would be a global explosion in tobacco use without international efforts to ban or limit advertising, raise tobacco taxes and educate the young. Lyme disease bacterium doesn't absorb iron, researcher says The bacterium that causes Lyme disease has been identified as the first disease-causing germ that does not need to take iron from the blood stream of its host.
From Individual.com - 6/4/00
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Launches Naturally Blue(SM) Program That Provides
Discounts on Acupuncture, Massage Therapy, Nutrition Counseling and Healthy Living Products The GCC is the UK statutory body with regulatory powers, established by the Chiropractors Act 1994. It has three main duties: a.. To protect the public by establishing and operating a scheme of statutory regulation for chiropractors, similar to the schemes for other health professionals such as medical doctors and dentists b.. To ensure the development of the profession of chiropractic, using a model of continuous improvement in practice c.. To promote the profession of chiropractic so that its contribution to the health of the nation is understood and recognised The GCC Register opened on the 15 June 1999. Any person in the UK describing himself as any kind of chiropractor must register with the GCC within the two year transitional period following the opening of the Register. After 14 June 2001 the title of chiropractor will be protected and it will be a criminal offence, liable to prosecution, to describe oneself as a chiropractor without being registered. In the interests of protecting the public you may wish to add our details to you site. The GCC can be contacted by e-mail at: enquiries@gcc-uk.org or via our web-site at: http://www.gcc-uk.org Should you have any questions, or require any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me. Yours sincerely
Gregory Price The following inspection report was posted to the OIG Web site on Monday, Nov.29, 1999. To access the report, go to Utilization Parameters for Chiropractic Treatments (OEI-04-97-00496; 11/99) OEI analyzed the potential impacts of establishing utilization review parameters at either 18 or 12 treatments per year. Implementing either option would ensure that Medicare pays for all chiropractic services that Medicare beneficiaries are entitled to and would help prevent payments for services not authorized under the program. By requiring carriers with high chiropractic utilization review parameters to implement lower review parameters, Medicare outlays would be reduced. One carrier has demonstrated the effect of reducing chiropractic utilization parameters. That carrier cut its chiropractic parameter in half and saved almost $3 million with virtually no change in program administrative costs. By establishing utilization review parameters at 18 or 12 beginning in 2000, we estimate annual Medicare outlays would be reduced by about $19.4 or $30.2 million respectively. We, however, recommended implementing a utilization review parameter of 12. This is the most commonly used parameter (29 of 55 carriers), and it would require the least administrative change for carriers overall. The HCFA concurred with our findings and recommendation. Important Medicare News The December 1998 issue of the Xact Medicare Report issued the following statement:
Chiropractic
An update to Medicare Carriers Manual, Section 4118, Chiropractic Services, changes how chiropractic codes must be billed when the beneficiary refuses to have an x-ray. Effective January 1, 1999, when a beneficiary refuses to have an x-ray, the claim must be billed using the correct chiropractic HCPCS code (98940, 98941, or 98942) along with the new GX modifier. Currently, when a beneficiary refuses to have an x-ray, the claim is billed using HCPCS code A9170 (Noncovered service by a chiropractor). This does not allow a secondary payer the ability to determine the chiropractic service that was provided. Use of the GX modifier in conjunction with one of the existing chiropractic procedure codes listed above will provide more specific information for secondary payers. For a list of Medicare Fee schedule's, please Click Here. Please note: Chiropractic OnLine Today provides recounts of these studies for informational purposes only. Readers are urged to review further information or contact your Doctor of Chiropractic for other preventive health measures. Note: As always, COT recommends that readers consult with a qualified healthcare professional prior to starting or changing any exercise program. Note: As always, COT recommends that readers consult with a qualified healthcare professional prior to starting or changing any nutritional program. Back to the TopChiropractic OnLine Today © 1995 - 2004.
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