By Cynthia Marcotte Stamer

The stage now appears to be set for the House of Representatives to vote as early as Sunday on the latest version of health care reform backed by President Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other key Congressional Democrats, the Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872).  The impending deadline means that health industry providers and other Americans concerned about the potential outcome of the impending vote need to act quickly if they wish to attempt to influence the decision. For tips about sharing your input with Congress effectively, see Getting Your Health Care Reform Message Heard By Key Congressional Leaders.

Developments Today Start Clock Running For Vote

On Thursday, March 18, 2010, two key developments set the stage for a vote on H.R. 4871 as early as Sunday:

• The House Rules Committee posted the text of H.R. 4872 on its website; and
• The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) delivered its scoring of H.R 4872 to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The delivery of CBO scoring started the clock running on the 72 hour mandatory period between the release of the CBO scoring and any final vote on the bill. This means the House could vote on H.R. 4872 as early as Sunday, March 21. 

If passed by the House, H.R. 4872 would make sweeping changes to the U.S. health care system impacting virtually every American patient, health care provider, employer and taxpayer.  To learn the facts about these proposed changes, read the full text of H.R. 4872 here.  

According to the CBO, H.R. 4872 will cost $940 billion over 10 years to extend coverage to 32 million uninsured people.  To learn more specifics about these cost and other determinations, review the CBO scoring here.

This Is Only The Beginning: Stay Involved

The outcome of this latest health care reform push is only a small part of a continuing process.  Whether or not the President’s proposal or some other version of health care reform passes this week, Congress already has and will continue to consider other legislation impacting health care reform.  This reality is demonstrated by Congressional actions recently taken on the COBRA premium subsidy extension, Medical reimbursement for physicians, continuing federal efforts to develop and implement federal health care quality and technology standards, and other legislative, regulatory and enforcement actions taken while public attention has been focused largely only on the broader health care reform debate.

Upcoming mid-term elections will significantly impact the nature and scope of these upcoming efforts.  Perhaps even more significantly, the enactment of legislation is only a beginning point.  The real meaning of these or other health care reforms will be determined largely by the shaping and implementation of regulations and enforcement actions which generally are conducted outside the public eye.  Monitoring and staying active in these ongoing processes provides a critical opportunity to continue to monitor your issues and provide input to shape how they are addressed.

Individuals concerned about these and other health care reform proposals and concerns are invited to stay involved in the discussion by sharing their input with Congress, regulators.  Concerned individuals also are invited to stay involved in the discussion by joining the Coalition for Responsible Health Care Reform Group on Linkedin and registering to receive these updates here. The author of this article, Curran Tomko and Tarski LLP Health Care Practice Chair Cynthia Marcotte Stamer has extensive experience advising and assisting health industry clients and others about a diverse range of health care policy, regulatory, compliance, risk management and operational concerns.  You can get more information about her health industry experience here.  

Help Monitoring & Responding To Developments

If you need assistance evaluating or formulating comments on the proposed reforms contained in the House Bill or on other health industry matters please contact Cynthia Marcotte Stamer, CTT Health Care Practice Group Chair, at cstamer@cttlegal.com or 214.270.2402. 

From her extensive involvement with federal and state legislative and regulatory licensing, telemedicine, managed care, privacy and other health, pension and other reforms in the U.S. to her involvement as a lead advisor to the Government of Bolivia on its pension privatization legislation, Ms. Stamer’s experience includes significant experience working with clients domestically on key health care and other public policy matters.  Vice President of the North Texas Health Care Compliance Professionals Association, Past Chair of the ABA Health Law Section Managed Care & Insurance Section and the former Chairman of the Board of Richardson Development Center for Children and past Board Compliance Chair of the National Kidney Foundation of North Texas, Ms. Stamer couples her policy experience with her extensive experience working with health industry clients on regulatory, staffing, reimbursement, risk management and compliance and other operational matters.  She has more than 22 years experience advising health industry clients about these and other matters.    A popular lecturer and widely published author on health industry matters, Ms. Stamer advises hospitals and other health industry clients about responding to and using these and other quality measures and other related concerns.  Ms. Stamer also publishes and speaks extensively on health and managed care industry quality, regulatory, reimbursement, and other operations, risk management and public policy concerns.  Her insights on these and other related matters appear in the Health Care Compliance Association, Atlantic Information Service, Bureau of National Affairs, World At Work, The Wall Street Journal, Business Insurance, the Dallas Morning News, Modern Health Care, Managed Healthcare, Health Leaders, and a many other national and local publications.  For additional information about Ms. Stamer, her experience, involvements, programs or publications, see here.  

Other Recent Developments & Resources

If you found this information of interest, you also may be interested in reviewing some of the following recent Updates available online by clicking on the article title:

• AHRO Invites Comments On Project To Develop & Test Hospital Toolkit Intended To Guide Hospitals In Using AHRQ Quality Indicators  
• NLRB Orders Union Elections In 31 California Health Care Facilities To Proceed
• IRS To Allow Medical Resident FICA Refund Claims
• Stamer Speaks To Chiefs of Staff About JCAHO Physician Performance Evaluation Requirements
• HIPAA Heats Up: HITECH Act Changes Take Effect & OCR Begins Posting Names, Other Details Of Unsecured PHI Breach Reports On Website
• HHS Delays 2010 HHS Federal Poverty Rate Update To March 1, 2010
• Rising Enforcement and Changing Rules Require Prompt Review & Update of Health Plan Privacy & Data Security Policies & Procedures
• Pfizer To Pay $2.3 Billion For Fraudulent Marketing In Largest DOJ Health Care Fraud Settlement
• Maximum Penalty For Patient Protection Act Confidentiality Breaches To Rise To $11,000
• HHS Delays 2010 HHS Federal Poverty Rate Update To March 1, 2010
• OIG Special Fraud Alert Targets DME Telemarketing
• Federal HEAT & Other Federal Health Care Fraud Efforts Score More Than 15 Successes As OIG Claims $20.97 Billion Saved From Enforcement Activities In December
• HEAT Initiative Snares Health Fraud Related Guilty Pleas of Physical Therapist, Money Launderer and Patient Recruiter In Detroit
• Medicare Paid Physicians More Than $92 Million in Incentives for 2008 Under the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative
• Renal Dialysis Faculties Encouraged to Review Current Protocols for Administering Erthropoiesis-Stimulating Agents
• CMS Publishes Updated FY 2010 Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective Payment System Final Rule
• Retaliation For Filing HIPAA Complaint Recognized As Basis For State Retaliatory Discharge Claim
• Quest Diagnostics Inc. To Pay $688,000 In Overtime Back Wages Settlement After Misclassifying Systems Employees As Exempt
• Homecare Workers Exempt From FLSA

For More Information

We hope that this information is useful to you.  If you need assistance with auditing or defending these or other health care compliance, risk management, transaction or operation concerns, please contact the author of this update, Curran Tomko Tarski LLP Health Practice Group Chair, Cynthia Marcotte Stamer, at (214) 270‑2402, cstamer@cttlegal.com, Edwin J. Tomko at (214) 270-1405 or another Curran Tomko Tarski LLP Partner of your choice. Ms. Stamer has extensive experience advising clients and writes and speaks extensively on these and other health industry and other internal controls and risk management matters. 

You can review other recent health care and internal controls resources and additional information about the health industry and other experience of Ms. Stamer here.  If you or someone else you know would like to receive future updates about developments on these and other concerns, please be sure that we have your current contact information – including your preferred e-mail – by creating or updating your profile at here or e-mailing this information to cstamer@cttlegal.com.

If you or someone else you know would like to receive future updates about developments on these and other concerns, please be sure that we have your current contact information – including your preferred e-mail – by creating or updating your profile at here or e-mailing this information here.  To unsubscribe, e-mail here.

©2010 Cynthia Marcotte Stamer.  All rights reserved.