Advocating for you

Highlighting of HCMS advocacy efforts for our member physicians and their patients.

HCMS has a long history of advocating for our members and their patients. Along with city officials, we developed the Harris County EMS system in the 1960s. In 2003 we were integral in the successful passage of tort reform. We have collected millions of dollars for our members that health plans would not have otherwise paid. Our priority is to work with our members, legislators and regulators to ensure we address the challenges physicians face every day.

Molina Healthcare of Texas

As a result of your complaints regarding payment issues, HCMS assisted members in collecting more than $2.7 million from Molina Healthcare to date. As a result of HCMS' complaint to the Texas Department of Insurance, Molina was fined $500,000 for violating state law.

TexanPlus/Wellcare

In January Texan Plus, now owned by Wellcare, transitioned its payment platform to the Wellcare platform. The conversion was not successful causing many issues including nonpayment, major delays in prior authorizations, contracting problems, etc. HCMS is continues to work closely with Wellcare and keeping CMS informed on the progress.

 

TxEver Death Certificate Registration System

The Texas Department of State Health Services created a new death certificate registration system, TxEVER, which went live Jan. 1, 2019. Since going live, it has been plagued with technical issues which have caused many physicians to exceed the 5-day window to file a death certificate. HCMS took action and met with representatives from the Texas Department of State Health Services to discuss the issues.  As a result, HCMS created a list of FAQs specifically designed to address your concerns about the new system.

Legislative visits

HCMS met with Reps. Pete Olsen, Dan Crenshaw, Kevin Brady and Lizzie Fletcher to discuss federal legislation dealing with surprise billing, prior authorizations and the federal prohibition against physician ownership of medical facilities. HCMS continues advocating for you even when the state legislature is not in session.

2019 Physician Advocate