Imagine 854 pages of regulations. That's what private health insurers face if they want to participate in Medicare's HMO program. The Bush administration said Friday that may be too many. The Bush administration is considering a plan to rate health care providers used by elderly and disabled citizens who are eligible for Medicare. The award is a fraction of damages sought.
Few doctors recognize the incurable syndrome.
The federal government is planning for the first time to issue detailed ratings of the quality of care provided by nursing homes, Medicare health plans, dialysis centers and eventually hospitals and doctors, a senior Bush administration official announced Monday. The federal agency that runs Medicare will try to regain HMOs that have bolted the program and double the number of seniors getting health care through such plans, the agency's new chief says. The agency that runs Medicare will improve the state and private information it collects on nursing homes, dialysis centers and other health care providers, but the government has no plans to create a scorecard of ratings, federal officials said Tuesday. The Bush administration is considering a plan to rate nursing homes, dialysis centers and other Medicare providers and make the information available to consumers. The Bush administration is considering a plan that could help Medicare recipients find one.