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• Perfusionist Licensure Bills Clear General Assembly
  House Bills 500 and 501 would establish licensure requirements for perfusionists.
• A Quick Glance at What’s Going On in Harrisburg
  The Pennsylvania Medical Society gives you a quick overview on health care legislation that is being considered in Harrisburg.
• House Bill Would Deny Payment for Preventable Serious Complications
  House Bill 2098 would deny payment to physicians for preventable serious complications, or "serious adverse events."
• Congress Must Act Now to Stop Medicare Payment Cuts
  Physicians are urged to ask Congress to take immediate action to stop Medicare physician payment cuts that will go into effect July 1, 2008.
• Patients Shouldn’t Flush Away Most Prescription Drugs
  Federal guidelines on prescription drug disposal recommend that patients not flush most unused drugs.
• Statement from the Pennsylvania Medical Society in Response to the House Amendment to SB 1137
  The following is a statement from Peter S. Lund, MD, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, regarding the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passing amendments to Senate Bill 1137.
• State Society Supports Renewal of PHC4
  House Bill 2028 would renew the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.
• Higher Education Bill Contains Provisions for Medical Students, Residents
  The higher education reauthorization bill approved by the US House of Representatives includes provisions, such as loan forgiveness programs, to ease the debt burden for medical students and residents.
• Senate Approves Legislation Limiting Idling Time for Trucks
  Senate Bill 295 would prohibit commercial diesel vehicles from idling for more than five minutes every hour.
• Reducing Your HIV Risk: Senate Bill Would Speed Up Treatment for Exposed Health Care Workers
  Senate Bill 1261 would permit immediate testing of patients when a health care worker may have been exposed to the HIV virus.
• New State Office Would Focus on Women’s Health
  House Bill 2115 would create a new state office dedicated to increasing preventive care and encouraging healthy lifestyles for women.
• Pennsylvania’s Public Health Law to Be Updated
  A Senate resolution has established a task force to review, update, and codify the state’s public health law.
• President Signs Law Delaying Medicare Payment Cuts
  A planned cut in Medicare physician payments has been delayed, prompting the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to grant physicians extra time to decide if they want to participate with Medicare in 2008.
• Bush Renews SCHIP
  The State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) has been extended at current funding levels through March 2009.
• Workers' Compensation Fees Increasing for 2008
  The WC Part B fee schedule will increase for services performed on or after Jan. 1, 2008.
• Medical Loan Deferment Continues for Another Year
  Elimination of the 20/220 rule has threatened medical school loan deferment due to economic hardship.
• State Society Supports Telemedicine Bill
  The bill would require Pennsylvania licensing of anyone from outside the commonwealth who practices medicine in the commonwealth using telemedicine.
• Legislation Would Require Insurer Payment for Colorectal Cancer Screening
  Legislation that would require health insurance policies to provide coverage for colorectal cancer examinations and screenings has been introduced in the state House of Representatives.
• OTC Sales of Needles and Syringes Should Be Permitted, but with Safeguards
  The State Society supports sale of needles and syringes without prescription but asks for regulations to prevent abuse.
• House Bill Would Remove Due Process Protections for Physicians
  The Pennsylvania Medical Society is working to resolve concerns with a bill that would strip due process safeguards from physicians and subject them to large fines for challenging the right of a licensing board to obtain information.
• State Society Opposes Lyme Disease Treatment Bill
  The Pennsylvania Medical Society opposes a bill that would endorse a specific treatment for lyme disease.
• State Society Sees Opportunities in New General Assembly Leadership
  Physicians will have many opportunities during the 2007-08 legislative session to build relationships with 55 new state legislators, 14 new caucus leaders, and five new federal legislators.
• Pennsylvania Medical Society Awarded State Grant to Study Broadband Access Among Physicians and Hospitals
  The State Society has received $300,000 to measure broadband access in physician's offices and other health care settings.
• Bill Would Require Insurers to Cover Autism
  The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee on April 1, 2008, considered a bill that would require health insurance companies to cover autism spectrum disorders.
• Report Card from the Capitol on Health Issues
  With the state General Assembly finally in summer recess after a drawn-out budget battle, it's time to take stock of health care initiatives important to patients and physicians.
• E-Prescribing Legislation Introduced in House
  Legislation that would establish e-prescribing guidelines was introduced in the state House of Representatives on July 3, 2007.
• Governor Nominates Oregon Regulator to Insurance Commissioner Post
  Governor Ed Rendell announced today that he had nominated Joel Ario, the chief insurance regulator from Oregon, to serve as Pennsylvania’s next insurance commissioner.
• Government Softens Regulations to Encourage Physician Adoption of Health Information Technology
  New exceptions and safe harbors to federal fraud and abuse laws allow physicians to receive donations of certain electronic health records and electronic prescribing technologies and services.

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