Regulators End Prohibition on Self-Referrals, Raise Mileage and Med Fees

While Medicare forbids physicians from referring patients to hospitals in which they own a stake, Nebraska’s workers’ compensation regulators have gone in a different direction and lifted a long-standing prohibition against the practice. That’s just one of several Nebraska rule revisions and medical fee schedule changes that took effect this week, most of which advocates say will make it easier and more affordable for injured workers to find medical care. At a meeting last month, the Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Court ended the prohibition on self...