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Showing 6 posts in House Bill 1.

Compliance: Include Prescribing Practices!

Since the implementation of House Bill 1 in 2012, the restrictions on prescribing controlled substances have become more and more stringent, which is a response to the opioid epidemic sweeping Kentucky and the nation. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services, the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure, the Kentucky Board of Nursing, and the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy are vigilant in policing prescribing practices and have tools through KASPER to closely monitor the prescribing practices of physicians and other practitioners. With the addition of new medications like Gabapentin to the controlled substances hit list, practitioners must be particularly careful to ensure that their prescribing is consistent with regulatory requirements, particularly when patients have been on this medication previously.   Physicians and practitioners must continually monitor compliance as even a minor violation can give rise to investigations, complaints and regulatory penalties.  Assessment of regulatory penalties, even when characterized as “Agreed Orders,” can have devastating consequences for physicians and practitioners’ practices and ability to maintain provider contracts, including Medicare and Medicaid. More >

Top Ten Health Law Issues for Physicians, Health Systems and Providers in 2014

Change is the one constant that physicians, health systems and other providers face in 2014 as the ACA and its myriad regulations become effective along with increasing review and scrutiny from not just state and federal regulators, but also private companies with state and federal contracts to review and audit claims, cost reports, and billing practices.  So, listed below are the top ten areas that physicians and other providers should watch in 2014. More >

House Bill 1 Revisited: Kentucky General Assembly Amends the Pill Mill Bill

In a 2012 Special Session, the Kentucky General Assembly passed House Bill 1, also known as the “pill mill bill,” to reign in the overprescribing of prescription drugs and the diversion of prescription drugs.  Following the enactment of House Bill 1 and it being signed into law by Governor Beshear, the Cabinet and various licensure boards issued regulations implementing House Bill 1’s requirements.  After emergency regulations were promulgated, Governor Beshear’s office held a series of stakeholder meetings to address the concerns of health care providers and other stakeholders to address some of the compliance and logistical issues that were being raised by stakeholders.  Both Governor Beshear’s office, as well as various licensure boards, recognized that House Bill 1 and the implementing regulations would require amendment and refinement to address concerns raised by the provider community and other stakeholders.  During the 2013 Regular Session of the General Assembly, some of these concerns were addressed in House Bill 217 which amended portions of House Bill 1 to address some of the compliance and other issues raised by health care providers and other stakeholders. More >

THE PERILS OF PRESCRIBING CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES

As the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure’s (“KBML”) implementing regulations for House Bill 1 are now effective on an emergency basis for the next six months, physicians, nurse practitioners, and other licensed prescribers have specific statutory and regulatory requirements establishing when and how they may prescribe controlled substances.  These rules must be followed or physicians and others may face serious consequences that include criminal misdemeanor offenses, loss of prescribing privileges, and disciplinary actions against professional licenses. All practitioners must pay careful attention to these rules because even minor violations may create problems. Because the KBML’s regulations are more comprehensive than the requirements of House Bill 1, a great deal of confusion exists concerning what physicians and practitioners are required to do and when. Recognizing that compliance with its emergency regulations may mean major changes in the way physicians practice medicine, the KBML has announced that it expects full compliance by October 1, which creates a welcome grace period.   While the ambiguities and details will be worked out over the course of the next six months, physicians should take heed and incorporate these things into their practices. More >

House Bill 1

Posted In Health Care Law, House Bill 1

Kentucky’s General Assembly passed House Bill 1 during the 2012 Special Session. House Bill 1 will become effective July 20, 2012.  More >

PRESCRIBERS BEWARE: KENTUCKY ENACTS PAIN CLINIC AND CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES LEGISLATION

In a Special Session, the Kentucky General Assembly enacted House Bill 1, sweeping legislation designed to combat prescription drug abuse through increased regulation of pain clinics and greater scrutiny of prescribing practices by various agencies of state government.  Governor Beshear signed the legislation into law, and it will become effective in July, 2012.  In addition to placing significant limits on the ownership of pain clinics and imposing a host of requirements governing the operations of pain clinics, the legislation also strengthens licensing standards for physicians and other practitioners and requires practitioners to take specific steps prior to prescribing or dispensing a Schedule II or Schedule III controlled substance. More >

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