1.  Medicare proposes new regulations to protect patients from preventable surgical errors. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed the establishment of uniform national policies to prevent Medicare from paying for certain serious, preventable errors in medical care, including: 

• Wrong surgical or other invasive procedures performed on a patient
• Surgical or other invasive procedures performed on the wrong body part; and 
• Surgical or other invasive procedures performed on the wrong patient

Medicare is seeking comments from the public regarding the proposed regulations.  The closing period for comments is January 1, 2009. Final regulations will be issued within 60 days after that.

More information is available on the three proposals at the CMS website at

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/mcd/viewdraftdecisionmemo.asp?id=223 and
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/mcd/viewdraftdecisionmemo.asp?id=222 and
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/mcd/viewdraftdecisionmemo.asp?id=221

2.  Social Security Administration (SSA) Inspector General (IG) issues semi-annual report. 

On behalf of the 576 agents, auditors, attorneys, and other employees in the IG's office, Patrick O'Carroll provided Congress with the results of their investigations and audits of the SSA for the last six months.

The report stated in part:

"We received more than 68,000 allegations from SSA employees, the Congress, the public, law enforcement agencies, and other sources. Our agents closed more than 5,000 criminal investigations, resulting in 800 arrests, more than 500 indictments, and more than 1,400 criminal prosecutions and civil monetary penalty assessments.

"Our auditors identified more than $1.7 billion in questioned costs and more than $808 million in Federal funds that could be put to better use.

"In the second half of FY 2008, we are reporting over $170 million in investigative accomplishments, with over $31 million in SSA recoveries, restitution, fines, settlements, and judgments, and over $138 million in projected savings from investigations resulting in the suspension or termination of benefits. In addition, we participated in multi-agency investigations that resulted in over $39 million in savings, restitution, and recoveries for other agencies."

The complete report is online at http://www.ssa.gov/oig/ADOBEPDF/sar042008092008.pdf

3.   Social Security holds third disability hearing on Compassionate Allowances. 

The Social Security Administration (SSA), in conjunction with the Department of Defense, held a public hearing on Compassionate Allowances at Fort Myer, Virginia to hear testimony from experts on traumatic brain injury (TBI), the most significant injury from conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and stroke.

"Compassionate Allowances allows us to make disability decisions on certain categories of cases in a matter of days, rather than months or years," said SSA Commissioner Michael Astrue.  "The hearing gives us additional insight into how we might better recognize and fast-track the disability applications of veterans and others dealing with the effects of TBI and strokes."

More information about Compassionate Allowances is online at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/compassionateallowances/