CMS has issued a reminder on EMTALA obligations in the event of a pandemic by re-issuing the previous advisory regarding Ebola from 2015. The document can be found under the Ebola category on this website or at the following link: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Provider-Enrollment-and-Certification/SurveyCertEmergPrep/Downloads/Survey-Cert-Letter-15-24-EMTALA-Ebola.pdf
All hospitals across the country would have to report when they close their doors to ambulances or may eventually face federal funding cuts, under a bill introduced Thursday in Congress, according to the Milwaukee Journal Standard. https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/investigations/2020/01/30/hospitals-must-report-when-they-turn-away-ambulances-under-new-bill/4615861002/ The bill, authored by U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., would also direct federal health officials to study ambulance … Read more
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has announced a $180,000 fine against a Georgia hospital for two common violations — 1) using a “rapid medical screening” that short-cuts EMTALA requirements and then asking for money upfront and 2) substituting the receiving physician’s opinion for the transferring physician’s opinion and denying a transfer. Put simply, the … Read more
October 14, 2019 — The FBI is warning all businesses and healthcare providers about the threat of ransomware that has been sweeping the country and disabling or totally closing businesses, healthcare systems, industrial companies, and the transportation sector. The October 2, 2019 public service announcement is the second in less than a month on the … Read more
The US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims reversed prior VA rulings Monday (Sept 10, 2019) and held that the Veteran’s Administration improperly denied claims for veterans who were treated in non-VA emergency departments and who were not covered by health insurance. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by Coast Guard veteran Amanda Wolfe, … Read more
The Office of Civil (OCR) rights announced on September 4 that it has assessed its first financial penalty for delayed provision of patient access to medical records. Hospital and medical offices have frequently been the object of HIPAA complaints for not allowing patients access to their records, delaying responses for records requests, and over-charging patients … Read more
Frequently Asked Questions Regarding EMTALA and Psychiatric Hospitals — CMS Quality, Safety & Oversight Group – July 2, 2019. Materials in brackets [ ] indicate editorial insertions by Publisher of this website. 1) Question: Do surveyors investigate state law and state scope of practice regulations while conducting an EMTALA investigation and how do those … Read more
I received a recent question on transfers by a mid-level provider and how the co-signature rule would apply: The regulations and site review guidelines indicate that the mid-level provider (IF THEY ARE AUTHORIZED TO PROVIDE AN MSE IN THE ED by the medical staff bylaws or board … Read more
Initially some people experienced a problem that caused them to receive the 3rd edition instead of 4th edition. We have corrected that and extended the No Charge download for the Kindle Edition through Sunday June 23. We are sorry for any inconvenience. It was our fault, not Amazon’s, but we are happy that we were … Read more
We have just released the Kindle Edition of our EMTALA Field Guide 4th Edition and to say thank you to you for following us on medlaw.com and Linked In, we are offering this edition on a launch special — download this Kindle Edition any time June 19-21 with absolutely NO CHARGE and NO GIMMICKS. If … Read more