The U.S. House of Representatives yesterday declined to attach a bill amending physician self-referral restrictions to the Balanced Budget Act of 2000. H.R. 2651, sponsored by Rep. William Thomas (R-CA), would modify anti-self-referral provisions, commonly known as Stark II, by defining the financial interests that would prevent a patient's referral to a healthcare provider.
Stark II (Sec. 1877 of Title XVIII of the Social Security Act) prohibits a physician from referring a patient to another entity for certain Medicare-paid health services if the physician has a financial relationship with that entity. The law expands on the 1989 Stark I law's prohibition against laboratory referrals.
However, years after its passage, the final rules for Stark II have yet to be released by the Health Care Financing Administration, and what constitutes financial interest in a healthcare entity remains unclear, according to some.
For its part, the American College of Radiology in Reston, VA, opposes the modification of Stark II's language.
Greg Crist, spokesman for the House Ways and Means Committee, said the bill was dropped from the larger budget bill in part to avoid potential partisan conflict regarding the Stark II legislation sponsored by Democrat Fortney "Pete" Stark (CA). The question of what constitutes financial interest is still not resolved, Crist said, and will likely be addressed again in the new legislative session.
By AuntMinnie.com staff writersOctober 4, 2000
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