Wisconsin Lawyer
Vol. 78, No. 5, May
2005
Medical copy fee rule
blocked: No relief for high costs of medical record copies
On March 27, the Wisconsin Legislature's Joint Committee for Review
of Administrative Rules (JCRAR), without comment or debate, voted along
party lines to block a rule setting limits on the fees that may be
charged for copies of medical records requested before a lawsuit
commences. The rule, advanced by the state Department of Health and
Family Services (DHFS) in response to a hard-won legislative mandate
advocated by the State Bar, would have limited charges to a maximum of
31 cents per page. A $15 retrieval fee would have been added if the
requestor is someone other than the subject of the records.
The State Bar strongly supported the proposed rule. Medical records
providers, along with the Wisconsin Hospital Association and the State
Medical Society, among others, objected to the rule claiming the rule
threatened potentially to drive them out of business and that the DHFS
had failed to fulfill its statutory obligation to set fees that
approximate the actual cost of reproduction of medical records.
Opponents tried to broker an alternative compromise, which would have
set the fees at $1 per page, which the State Bar opposed and the DHFS
rejected. The Republican majority on the committee, without comment,
sided with the medical records community.
The matter now moves to the full legislature, which must debate a
bill that will be introduced to support JCRAR's objection to the
proposed rule. Until there is a disposition of that legislation, the
proposed rule remains blocked, and medical records providers will
continue to be able to charge whatever they think the market will bear
for records requested before an action commences.
Wisconsin has a unique process for prepromulgation legislative review
and veto of administrative rules. For more information on rulemaking and
the legislature's rule review process, visit http://www.legis.state.wi.us/
196 KB.
Bankruptcy reform signed into law -
"Lawyer-unfriendly" provisions remain to be addressed
On April 20, President Bush signed into law sweeping bankruptcy
legislation, S. 256, containing provisions that will dramatically
increase the liability and administrative burdens of debtor bankruptcy
attorneys and seriously impinge on the effective legal representation of
many Wisconsinites.
The State Bar vigorously opposed three provisions in the bill that
would heighten attorney liability and intrude on the attorney-client
relationship. Those provisions will require debtor attorneys to: 1)
certify the accuracy of the debtor's schedules of assets, under penalty
of harsh court sanctions; 2) certify the ability of the debtor to make
future payments under reaffirmation agreements; and 3) identify and
advertise themselves as "debt relief agencies" subject to a host of
intrusive regulations that would interfere with the confidential
attorney-client relationship.
During the Senate floor and House Judiciary Committee debates on S.
256 last month, several amendments were offered that would have removed
the harmful attorney liability provisions from the bill. Despite
substantial support for the amendments in the Senate and the committee,
the amendments were not adopted. The State Bar will continue to work
with House and Senate Judiciary Committee leaders in an effort to
address the attorney liability provisions contained in S. 256 before the
legislation becomes effective on Oct. 17. A Wisconsin delegation,
including State Bar President Michelle Behnke and lobbyists for the Bar,
went to Washington D.C. in April to join with the American Bar
Association's lobbying efforts to remove these provisions from the
law.
The new Bankruptcy Reform Act, which makes several sweeping changes,
culminates an eight-year effort by banks and credit card interests to
enact reforms that will, among other things, make it harder for most
consumers to discharge debts in Chapter 7 bankruptcies. Proponents argue
that the reforms in the Act are needed to prevent abuse of the
bankruptcy system by making it more difficult for many individuals to
file for bankruptcy under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, which erases
most of an individual's debt after assets are liquidated to pay
creditors. The Act establishes a means test to force more affluent
debtors to file under Chapter 13, which requires individuals to repay
some of their debt within three to five years.
This legislation will affect a large number of clients. To learn more
about the Bankruptcy Reform Act and how it may affect your practice and
clients, watch closely for other highlights and in-depth seminars on
this topic in the coming weeks and months (see inset).
Learn more about the Bankruptcy Reform
Act
For opportunities to learn more about the Bankruptcy Reform Act and
how it may affect your practice and your clients, watch closely for
these and other highlights and in-depth seminars on this topic in the
coming weeks and months.
- A critical issues and highlights "dial-up" teleseminar will be
presented by State Bar CLE Seminars on June 9.
- State Bar CLE Seminars also will present live half-day seminars on
Aug. 4 and 5 in Milwaukee and Madison, respectively. The Aug. 5 seminar
also will be presented as a Webcast.
- An article will be published in the July Wisconsin
Lawyer.
- The State Bar has updated its consumer pamphlet, "Answering Your
Questions About Bankruptcy," for distribution to clients.
- CLE Books plans to release a new book in the fall of 2005.
To register for a State Bar seminar:
For more information:
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