March 31, 2003--- AMED News Article Details Georgia Physicians’ Battle With Blues

In 1997 the Georgia Medical Association and four doctors, filed an action requesting that the state court declare that all physicians' Blues contracts were unenforceable. The state court in 2002 agreed with doctors’ indication that physicians had no way of knowing how much they eventually would be reimbursed. Without that knowledge the court noted there was no valid consideration and that without consideration, no agreement could exist. The Medical Association of Georgia is now asking a judge and the state's insurance commissioner to force Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia to give physicians additional information on how it bundles CPT codes for patient claims so that the doctors can determine the real fee schedules. The physicians argue that this information is simply the same data the court ordered the Blues to reveal almost a year ago. For the entire article, please go to www.ama-assn.org.

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