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Thu Aug 17 16:46:18 BST 2006

John,

I think your focus is off.....You need to change that sentence around; the law that limits reimbursement because of a practice that improves medical care and (eventually) perhaps eventually outcomes, is NOT in the best interest of your patients or our society.  

Maybe you and the rest of the AZ medical community need to mobilize and get that mandate/law repealed.  we did it here - you sure could do the same there!

Good luck,
Ron

>>> <jpcut2cure at aol.com> 8/17/2006 11:02 AM >>>
Yes, we have already been having payments denied because the driver had a positive BAL.  A mandate for screening and intervention which limits our reimbursement may not be in the best interest of the patient and society.

john porter
university of arizona 

-----Original Message-----
From: brombwi1 at memorialhealth.com 
To: trauma-list at trauma.org 
Sent: Wed, 16 Aug 2006 1:14 PM
Subject: Re: Alcohol Screening

Rick,

I appreciate the info and will check Larry's  database to see who to pester. 
However, if they close the trauma center b/c the hospital loses to much money 
(which they've threatened to do here more than once) then the aggregate loss to 
the population is worse than not screening (IMO ― but I tend to have an 
overinflated sense of my own worth, just ask my wife). That being said, we 
should always do the right thing for the patient but we should not be suckers 
and forget to fight to make other people do the right thing too. In short if the 
right thing for us to do  is BA testing (which I believe) than we should screen. 
We should also still be paid for the patient's care. The insurance companies 
would LOVE a policy that requires us to select out ~60% of patients (est. of 
alcohol-related MVCs) that they could then deny payment on. As part of this 
initiative we should demand repeal of those laws.

Bill
>>> docrickfry at aol.com 08/16/06 01:03PM >>>
Bill--
Larry Gentilello has a handle on every state's status with regard to these laws, 
and who the contact person is in your state legislature or Insurance Office to 
work with regarding changing this legislations.  Contact him to help.   
Meanwhile, are we really saying that payment issues will cause us to deny 
patients what is best for them????
ERF

-----Original Message-----
From: brombwi1 at memorialhealth.com 
To: trauma-list at trauma.org 
Sent: Wed, 16 Aug 2006 9:54 AM
Subject: Re: Alcohol Screening

What are we to do with the insurance policies that deny payment for 
alcohol-related MVCs? These laws need to changed.

Bill B

William J. Bromberg
Savannah Surgical Group
912 350-7412

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William J. Bromberg
Savannah Surgical Group
912 350-7412

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Alcohol Screening