Online physician rating Web sites are increasing in popularity, raising concerns from some physicians, the St. Petersburg Timesreports.

Users and those who run physician rating Web sites argue that the ratings provide consumers with important information.

Physician Concerns

Many physicians say that online ratings do not provide an accurate or complete picture of doctors. They note that because many sites allow users to rate physicians anonymously, it is unclear if the information is accurate. 

Some physicians are going as far as to ask patients to sign privacy agreements that prohibit them from posting comments or rating physicians online.

Fred Whitson of the Florida Medical Association said Florida consumers can get better information about physicians from other sources, such as the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration or the state Department of Health.

However, Whitson acknowledged that online physician rating sites are here to stay. He said that taking certain measures, such as eliminating anonymous comments, could improve the sites (Martin,St. Petersburg Times, 5/17).

Source: iHealthBeat published daily

Well familiar with the varieties of such fraud, a Florida senator has filed two bills aimed at further tightening the noose on fraud against government healthcare programs. Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL), whose state is the national leader in crimes against government healthcare organizations, has been holding a hearing on the topic this week.

Martinez has filed one bill that would end the use of Social Security Numbers as ID numbers for Medicare beneficiaries, as well as call for a new review of providers and suppliers along with real-time analysis of claims data.

The second bill would require HHS to publish Medicaid payment data to a public website. The de-identified data would help authorities search out and prosecute fraud, along with helping researchers and others find ways to cut down on fraud and waste.

To learn more about the new bills:
- read this Modern Healthcare piece (reg. req.)

Source:

FierceHealthcare
1319 F Street NW, Suite 604
Washington, DC 20004
202.628.8778

Tenet Healthcare has reported a meaningful first-quarter profit, driven by a one-time debt swap gain and higher revenue. This represents a substantial change from just a couple of years ago, when bankruptcy rumors were swirling around the company.

The company earned $178 million for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $31 million during the same period last year. Meanwhile revenue rose 5 percent, to $2.28 billion. These results include a $134 million gain on Tenet’s exchange of debt.

During this period, Tenet’s same-hospital paying admissions fell less than 1 percent when compared with the same quarter last year. Admissions of patients covered by a leap-year adjusted 2 percent, to 34,468.

Meanwhile, Tenet saw its uninsured admissions fall 6 percent, to 5,518, though charity care rose 9 percent to 2,601.

To learn more about Tenet’s results:
- read this Associated Press piece

Source:
FierceHealthcare
1319 F Street NW, Suite 604
Washington, DC 20004
202.628.8778