In a landmark development, Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) has reached a $2.8 billion settlement to resolve antitrust claims brought by health care providers, including chiropractors. The lawsuit accused BCBS of dividing the nation into exclusive regions and limiting competition, which resulted in lower reimbursements for providers. Although BCBS denies any wrongdoing, the company agreed to the settlement to avoid lengthy litigation – and you can get a piece of the pie.
Washington Chiropractic Quality Assurance Commission Seeks Retraction from Chiropractic Journal
A front-page "bulletin" in the April 1999 issue of the Chiropractic Journal reported that the Washington State Chiropractic Quality Assurance Commission had "formally adopted the CCP guidelines as the interpretive document defining the standard of care." The Chiropractic Journal report goes on to state that "(T)he commission's adoption becomes effective immediately."
But according to the May 13, 1999 meeting minutes of the Washington State Quality Assurance Commission, the journal's statement "is not true!" (emphasis theirs). According to the March 11, 1999 minutes of the commission's meeting, the commission asked its staff "to draft an interpretive statement for the commission to review at the May meeting."
Review of the "interpretive statement" has now been pushed off until August. Even so, depending on the decisions made by the commission, the interpretive statement would still go before the DCs in Washington for their input.