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Small Businesses, Doctors Voice Concerns About Health Reform
"Small business is suddenly playing a big role in negotiations over health care," NPR reports. "Supporters and opponents of various plans to overhaul the system are all trying to paint themselves as champions of mom and pop entrepreneurs." The National Federation of Independent Business is "not happy with the health care bill taking shape in the House this week - especially its requirement for all but the smallest employers to provide health insurance or pay a penalty." Meanwhile, "the Democratic National Committee quickly lined up its own panel of small business owners to defend the House plan."
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Department Of Justice, HHS Boosts Number Of Investigators, Prosecutors Looking At Medicare, Medicaid Fraud
HHS and the Department of Justice on Wednesday launched the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team to detect and prevent fraud in Medicare and Medicaid, the Washington Post reports (Johnson, Washington Post, 5/21). DOJ also plans to establish teams to address fraud in the Medicare Part D program and CHIP (Kennedy, AP/Houston Chronicle, 5/20). Wednesday"s announcement also included a recommendation by President Obama"s administration to include $311 million in the fiscal year 2010 budget to address health care fraud, which is a 50% increase from FY 2009. According to Attorney General Eric Holder, efforts to combat health care fraud will contribute to the administration"s health care overhaul plans (Clark/Weaver, McClatchy/Kansas City Star, 5/20). The task force, which will include HHS and DOJ staff members, law enforcement agents and prosecutors, will meet biweekly, CQ HealthBeat reports (Norman, CQ HealthBeat, 5/20). Under the plan, existing enforcement teams in Miami and Los Angeles will be expanded and new teams will be established in Houston and Detroit, where officials say suspicious billing patterns have emerged. In addition, the plan will set up task forces in 10 other major cities, which were not named (AP/Houston Chronicle, 5/20). The enforcement teams will increase site visits to durable medical equipment suppliers upon their enrollment. In addition, officials will expand training to help providers identify and prevent fraud or other mistakes (CQ HealthBeat, 5/20). The task force will use electronic claims data to detect "unusual billing problems," according to the Post (Washington Post, 5/21). HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the task force also intends to simplify billing systems and assist state officials in conducting Medicaid audits (CQ HealthBeat, 5/20). According to Holder, the joint task force will allow officials to share real-time intelligence data on health care fraud by monitoring claims payments, billing patterns and targeted surveillance (AP/Houston Chronicle, 5/20). Money
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Senate Health Committee To Begin Reform Mark Up Today, Finance To Follow Next Week
Senate Democrats are scrambling to reduce the price tag of reform proposals, which initial estimates place at $1.6 trillion, The Wall Street Journal reports.
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Statutory Regulation Of Practitioner Psychologists, UK

A Decade-Long campaign by the British Psychological Society to have statutory regulation for practitioner psychologists comes to fruition. From the 1 July the Health Professions Council (HPC) takes over the regulation of the majority of practitioner psychologists. Protected titles that only a statutory regulated psychologist can use are: - Clinical Psychologist - Counselling Psychologist - Educational Psychologist - Forensic Psychologist - Health Psychologist - Occupational Psychologist - Sport and Exercise Psychologist. Two additional titles have been protected - Registered Psychologist and Practitioner Psychologist - which all psychologists on the Register will be able to use. Sue Gardner, President of The British Psychological Society said: "We"re delighted that the Society"s many years of campaigning for statutory regulation have finally come to a conclusion. The road has been very long and bumpy. However, there remain aspects of the regulation processes which we believe will not deliver the full protection of the public as we had hoped. "Our concerns include the fact that not all existing Chartered Psychologists, who up until now have been regulated by the Society, will automatically be able to register with the HPC. We"re also concerned that the protected titles do not include the simple title psychologist. This could lead to a two-tier system and confusion for the public". Sue Gardner continued: "However, we"re committed to work with the HPC to help make their role as the new regulator a success. We want to help the public understand the differences between those qualified psychologists that are covered by the HPC and those that are not. "We are pleased that the HPC listened to our advice about the education entry levels. They will use the same entry level threshold as the Society, which we have benchmarked at Doctorate level. This recognises promises made by the Government to the Society that standards would not drop as a result of the transition from voluntary to statutory regulation". The British Psychological Society will continue to promote the advancement and understanding of the science and application of psychology, as well as standards for its members. These are responsibilities granted through the Society"s Royal Charter. The Society will continue to offer Chartered Membership to those psychologists who meet our high standards of education and training. Notes The British Psychological Society is the representative body for psychology and psychologists in the UK, and currently has nearly 50,000 members. The Society, formed in 1901, is the only UK body to represent all areas of applied psychology through its Divisions. Comments on statutory regulation from the Society"s Division Chairs Dr Jenny Taylor, Chair of the Division of Clinical Psychology (DCP) said: "People who are distressed or unwell value clarity about who they can trust to help them. This is especially so in the context of multiple providers of "therapy". The DCP is therefore delighted that there is now a clear system to ensure easy public recognition of psychological expertise". For more information about clinical psychology go to the Division of Clinical Psychology website. Nichola Gale, Vice-Chair of the Division of Counselling Psychology (DCoP) said: "Statutory regulation is an important safeguard for people seeking psychological help at a time when they may be distressed and vulnerable. It will ensure they see someone who is professionally competent and who practises in an ethical way. Regulation is also good for psychologists demonstrating the high standards of the profession". Joy Wellan, Chair of the Division of Educational Psychology (DECP) said: "The DECP particularly welcomes the decision by the HPC to set qualification for Educational Psychologists at the doctorate level. It is believed that this will ensure that current high standards. Our Division also welcomes the development of the BPS Learning Centre to support the Continuing Professional Development and practice of applied psychologists". Dr Carol Ireland, Chair of the Division of Forensic Psychology (DFP) said: "I very much welcome the regulation of our full members by the HPC. This will allow the continuation of an excellent service provided to all of our clients, and ensure that our high standards as scientist practitioners continue". Dr Martin Hagger, Deputy Chair of the Division of Health Psychology (DHP) said: "The Division and its membership welcome the introduction of statutory regulation as it ensures that the high levels of competency and professional practice offered through the BPS Charter are now a legal requirement. This means that Health Psychologists working in the NHS and in other applied settings like public and occupational health deliver services to the public that are of the highest quality and standard". David Carew Chair of the Division of Occupational Psychology (DOP) said: "Our Chartered Psychologists have a strong reputation for high quality delivery among business and consumers of their services. Our commitment to evidence-based practice, ethics and the maintenance of high standards through continuing professional development is a guarantee that underpins our regulation as a profession". "With the increasing focus on governance and the need for professional assurance, it is only right that the public and organisations receive services provided by registered Occupational Psychologists who have met the prescribed training requirements and standards of the Society and of the HPC. This move is good for businesses and organisations, and for the people who work in them". Dr Joanne Thatcher, Chair of the Division of Sport and Exercise Psychology (DSEP) said: "With the increasing use of sport and exercise psychology to enhance sporting performance, and to support initiatives to increase exercise levels in the population, regulation of Sport and Exercise Psychologists by the HPC is a welcome step towards safeguarding people who use our services". The Society had been the voluntary regulator since the late 1980s. British Psychological Society


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