On May 15, 2014, Representative Jim McDermott (D. Wash.) introduced legislation that would extend the same limitation on reimbursement for designated health services reimbursed under the Medicaid program as currently applies under the federal prohibition on physician self-referrals commonly known as the Stark Law.
The legislation, entitled the Medicaid Self-Referral Act of 2014, would prohibit payment under the Medicaid program for the furnishing of any designated health services to any entity with which a referring physician (or an immediate family member) has a financial relationship.
The legislation has been introduced, in part, due to disparate treatment of Medicaid under Stark Law analysis, with courts often finding that the Stark Law does not apply to payments made under the Medicaid program.
The legislation is intended to remove this distinction, with the Stark Law applying to Medicare and Medicaid program payments equally.