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Idaho Patient Act Changes
/in Idaho Healthcare LawBy Kim Stanger and Allison (Ally) Kjellander
Idaho has enacted limited changes to the Idaho Patient Act (IPA) that make it somewhat easier for healthcare providers and facilities to jump through the IPA hoops before pursuing collection actions against patients. A copy of HB778 showing the changes is available here. The changes are generally effective for collection actions initiated on or after March 25, 2022.
IPA violations limit healthcare providers’ ability to recover collection costs and related charges (including attorneys’ fees) and may subject the provider to civil penalties, all of which may make medical debt collection financially impractical. (I.C. § 48-305).1 Accordingly, this article summarizes key IPA provisions as well as the recent amendments. Read more
Telehealth in Idaho: Regulations Withdrawn
/in Idaho Healthcare Law, TelehealthBy Kim Stanger
As part of Governor Little’s initiative to reduce nonessential regulations, Idaho licensing boards (including the Idaho Board of Medicine) have withdrawn their rules implementing the Idaho Telehealth Access Act for healthcare providers, including physicians, physician assistants, dentists, and psychologists. (See, e.g., former IDAPA 24.33.03.201 et seq.). Consequently, physicians and most other healthcare providers need only comply with the Act, which requires the following: Read more
CMS Vaccine Mandate: New Deadlines
/in COVID-19By Kim Stanger
On January 13, 2022, a divided Supreme Court vacated the injunctions that applied to CMS’s vaccine mandate in 24 states, thereby allowing CMS to enforce its mandates in all states except Texas.1 (https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/21a240_d18e.pdf). Here are key points for providers seeking to comply with the mandate.
Deadlines for Compliance. The effective deadlines for compliance run from the date CMS issued its relevant compliance guidance to survey agencies. For facilities in states that were not subject to an injunction, CMS issued its guidance on December 28, 2021. (QSO-22-07-ALL, available at https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-22-07-all.pdf). For facilities in states that were subject to an injunction (i.e., Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming), CMS issued its updated guidance on January 14, 2022. (QSO-22-09-ALL, available at https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qso-22-09-all-injunction-lifted.pdf). As set forth in the guidance, the deadlines are as follows: Read more
No Surprise Billing Rules: Good Faith Estimates and Unscheduled Services
/in Providers, Reimbursement & CollectionsBy Kim Stanger
The No Surprise Billing Rules took effect January 1, 2022, but many questions remain, including if and to what extent the new rules for good faith estimates apply to items or services that are provided to self-pay patients on an unscheduled basis, such as emergency, urgent care, or walk-in patients. Read more
No Surprise Billing Rules: Checklist for Providers
/in Compliance, ProvidersBy Kim Stanger
Many providers make the No Surprise Billing Rules more complicated and expansive than they are. To help healthcare providers and facilities understand, implement and monitor compliance with the new rules, Holland & Hart has prepared a short guide and checklist for compliance, available here.