Laddaga-Garrett, P.A.

08/01/2024

Congrats to Mattie Smith and Dale Turner for their first published article.

HFM Magazine August issue

02/28/2024

https://www.beckerspayer.com/payer/justice-department-begins-antitrust-investigation-into-unitedhealth.html

The Justice Department launches antitrust investigation into UnitedHealth Group.

02/26/2024

So enjoyed speaking on this oanel today and honored to be on stage with such rockstar healthlaw reimbursement attorneys.

02/25/2024

Speaking tomorrow on a panel with 3 distinguished health lawyers in the reimbursement space in a question and answer session. Excited to be here.

01/03/2024

Laddaga-Garrett, P.A. is pleased to announce that Dale Turner L. Dale Turner, Esq. has joined the firm as an associate January 2, 2024. We're very excited to have him on board.

12/08/2023

Went to open house for new building for Palmetto Community Care. What a beautiful building. Enjoyed meeting all the team members I was able to meet. You can see their passion for the mission of this wonderful non profit doing such great work in our community. Honored to be representing you. Thanks for inviting me.

03/27/2023

"Avoiding Probate" seems to be a common mantra among internet non-legal estate guru's conventional wisdom s but not always the best idea. I see numerous examples of how trying to do so only unnecessarily complicates matters and increases costs, if not frustrating the decedent's desires altogether. Today's example: Bank Accounts "Paid on Death" or "POD". This method of titling bank accounts is becoming more and more popular, since the beneficiary just goes t bank with identification and a death certificate and transfers the account. (If the beneficiary knows who they are). On the SC Bar's list serve e mail list for Probate and Estate Planning, a member writes that the decedent had half a million dollars in CD's all POD. Except he didn't tell any of the beneficiaries And the bank refuses to release ANY information. None of the estate heirs who were notified are these CD beneficiaries. And, it's an out of state bank. Not surprisingly, within the hour, another member writes they have the same problem with an in state bank. The bank continues to send 1099's to the decedent. Essentially, the bank is holding money that is no longer theirs, (or the decedent for that matter) and they have no interest in providing this information. Since none of the beneficiary are heirs of the estate it's not technically the estate's problem and those heirs might be reticent to take on the cost of litigation to force the bank to disclose. I emphasize to my estate planning clients how, unless there is a reason to the contrary, your estate plan is only as good as the beneficiaries knowledge of how you want things handled. Even a list given to his Personal Representative could have avoided this extra delay and added cost.

02/07/2023

A little long read, but one of the best pieces to describe in detail some of the measures payers will take to deny high dollar claims. One of the best examples of why we do what we do and why, for select high dollar claims, you need legal representation.

08/31/2022

Received an e mail from an organization I belong to offering a"free" online will as part of their offerings to members. Curious, I followed the link and "prepared" my will. Not counting the unseemly fact the program asked that this organization be included as a beneficiary of my will THREE times, I found numerous concerns.
Worst was the fact the program lets you "choose" how the will is executed. In SC, as in many states, there are not "options" for ex*****on (signing) the will. It is either correctly executed or it is not. If it is not correctly executed, it is not admissible to probate and your estate is administered as if you had to will at all. In other words, you would be considered intestate and the intestacy statute governs where your property goes instead of your wishes.
It also failed in leaving crucially important advance directives - durable powers of attorney, health care powers of attorney, and living wills as additional "options". In todays society, these are as important as a well crafted will
There were other errors, provisions which I thought to be unnecessary, missing provisions i consider necessary. Ever since I represented an estate, which was a tragedy in every possibly way were the young mother of three downloaded her will from the internet, I have occasionally filled out these online forms thinking they'll improve in quality. So far they haven't. Please see a competent estate planning lawyer for these documents as well as the advice that comes with them to ensure your property passes as you choose, and that you're covered should be become unable to make decisions for yourself.

08/10/2022

https://www.beckerspayer.com/payer/federal-judge-gives-final-approval-to-2-67b-bcbs-antitrust-settlement.html

A federal judge in Alabama has approved a final settlement of $2.67 billion with Blue Cross Blue Shield companies following a decade long legal battle over alleged anticompetitive behavior that negatively affected members, The Wall Street Journal reported Aug. 9.

04/29/2022

https://www.hfma.org/topics/news/2022/04/oig-calls-out-issues-with-denials-of-payment-and-services-in-med.html

Medicare Advantage processes related to prior authorization hamper beneficiaries’ access to medically necessary care, according to a new report from the HHS Office of Inspector General.

02/24/2022

https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/legal-regulatory-issues/judge-rules-against-hhs-surprise-billing-arbitration-rule.html?origin=CFOE&utm_source=CFOE&utm_medium=email&utm_content=newsletter&oly_enc_id=9241H3876012J8N

A federal judge ruled Feb. 23 that the contentious No Surprises Act arbitration process implemented by HHS violated the Administrative Procedure Act, delivering a win to the Texas Medical Association, according to Law360.