Medicare payments under the microscope

Whether the federal program should pay the same for a treatment whether the patient gets it at a doctor's office or, say, an outpatient hospital facility, was the focus of a congressional hearing. Meanwhile, hundreds of Colorado doctors charge Medicare more than is typical for routine patient visits, according to an analysis of recently released data.

Kaiser Health News: Health On The Hill: Should Medicare Pay The Same No Matter Where The Patient Gets Care?
That question was the focus of a House subcommittee hearing Wednesday, and it's an important issue in the context of the debate over ending the Medicare SGR. Kaiser Health News' Mary Agnes Carey and CQ HealthBeat's John Reichard discuss the topic (5/21).

Kaiser Health News: Some Colorado Doctors May Be Overcharging Medicare For Routine Visits
Hundreds of Colorado doctors are charging Medicare far more than is typical for routine patient visits, according to a new database. The numbers could reveal fraud. But experts caution that the raw data alone could also make physicians who are doing nothing wrong look bad. Findings are based on an analysis of a database assembled by ProPublica, an independent, nonprofit newsroom. The data show payments made according to the system of codes for routine office visits doctors use to bill Medicare and insurance companies (Whitney, 5/22).