On Monday, the FDA issued a press release announcing the approval of generic versions of the drug Lyrica (pregabalin). Those of us operating in the workers compensation industry are all too familiar with Lyrica. It’s a high-priced medication utilized for the treatment of pain related to nerve damage, and its inclusion within Workers’ Compensation Medicare […] Continue
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released two new updated guides earlier this month: an updated Section 111 Medicare Secondary Payer Reporting User Guide, and an updated Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside Portal User Guide. Both of these guides contain very minor updates, which will not have a significant impact on the claims handling process. […] Continue
Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed decision to cover acupuncture for Medicare patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) who are enrolled participants either in clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) or in CMS-approved studies. Currently, acupuncture is not covered by Medicare. You may recall […] Continue
In February, the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) published a report that had some interesting findings regarding the use of prescription drugs. With respect to utilization, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen now rank above opioids as the most commonly prescribed medication class for workers’ compensation claimants. In terms of reimbursement, CWCI […] Continue
Next week, CMS will be holding a telephone call to discuss and answer questions regarding CMS’ new opioid policies for Medicare drug plans. CMS finalized new policies for the Part D plans to follow starting January 1, 2019. Through this initiative, CMS is seeking to strengthen and broaden its partnership with providers to address the […] Continue