Wednesday, January 12, 2005

Managed Care Laws Did Not Favor Provider Interests, Study Finds   Medscape Medical News - "The flurry of patient protection laws passed by states during the managed care backlash of the late 1990s did not, contrary to popular opinion, favor the interest of physicians and hospitals over that of consumers, a new study finds. Instead, these laws, which often include provisions that require health plans to accept all providers into a network; mandate that notice be given when providers are 'deselected' from a network; and call for direct access to certain specialists, represented a 'convenient alignment of interests among providers, patients, and lawmakers,' according to the study. It was published in the Dec. 15, 2004, issue of the American Journal of Medicine." "med"