Rio Grande Herald (Rio Grande City, Tex.), Vol. 82, No. 28, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 13, 1995 Page: 4 of 8
eight pages : ill. ; page 22 x 14 in. Digitized from 35 mm. microfilm.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
« t
RIO GRANDE HERALD-Thursday, July 13, 1995, Page 4
Combating Medicare Fraud:
What vou can do
Nearly 800 million claims for
Medicare benefits were submitted to
Medicare for payment in 1992.
Some of the claims were fraudulent
As fraudulent claims were detected,
some providers were warned, some
were fined, some were thrown out
of the Medicare program, and some
were sent to prison. Despite the
efforts, it is estimated that as much
as S10 billion was stolen from
Medicare that year.
Each time Medicare pays a claim
it shouldn't, the government is
being ripped-off, and as a taxpayer
so are you. When someone
knowingly or willingly lies in order
to get paid this is fraud, a federal
crime. Such a crime happens when
a provider misrepresents on the
claim form what was furnished to
the consumer.
When you suspect that Medicare
has improperly paid a claim,
contact the insurance company thai
paid. The company will contact the
provider to investigate. If you
wish, your name will not be used
If you feel comfortable doing so.
you may contact the provider that
submitted the claim before calling
Medicare and inform the provider
that Medicare paid for the item or
service. Also, explain why you
believe Medicare should not have
paid.
If the provider trade an honest
mistake, it can be corrected and
Medicare will get a refund. If the
provider told you before you
received the service that Medicare is
not likely to pay for the service,
you may have to pay for the
service.
In many cases, you will not
suspect foul play until you review
the Explanation of Your Part B
Medicare Benefits tEOMB). These
explanations include information on
whether or not Medicare paid, how
much, and the item service for
which Medic:>re paid. These
statements are valuable in detecting
Medicare fra t Look for
• Duplicate payment for the
same ser% ice;
• Ambulance services you are
not aware of;
• Payment for home medical
equipment while you or a family
member arc in a Medicare approved
hospital or nursing home;
• Dates of service on the EOMB
that differ from the dates you
actually received the service;
• Outpatient services billed while
the patient was in the hospital; and
• Items or services vou do not
recall getting. Remember,
however, that there are some
instances when you will receive
bills from a provider you never
saw. For example, you may have
gotten services from radiologists or
cardiologists who interpret test
results for your personal physician.
Vou may never meet these
consultants, but they perform real,
necessary services.
It you believe Medicare is being
cheated, call or write the Medicare
company that paid the claim. The
name, address and telephone number
are on the Explanation of Your Pari
B Medicare Benefits. If you plan to
write rather than call, clearly state
at the beginning of your letter that
you are filing a fraud complaint.
This will ensure that your
complaint is processed through the
mail room to the fraud unit.
Address the envelope to the name
and address on the explanation of
Medicare benefits, attention:
Medicare Fraud Unit.
Garcia deployed aboard
the USS Defender
Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class
Armando Garcia, son of Armando
and Elida Garcia of Falcon Heights,
Texas, is currently halfway through
a six-month overseas deployment to
the North Atlantic Ocean and Baltic
and Mediterranean seas aboard the
mine countermeasures ship USS
Defender.
Garcia is one of 84 Sailors aboard
the ship who have already traveled
more then 5,000 miles since
leaving Ingleside, Texas, in
February. Working aboard one of
the Navy's newest high-tech mine
sweepers, Garcia has joined Sailors
aboard three other U.S. Navy mine
(See GARCIA, Page 8)
1995 Gift of Sight
Award was presented
to Dr. Joseph A.
Jachimczyk
HOUSTON -- Dr. Joseph A.
Jachimczyk, the 35-year veteran
chief medical examiner of Harris
County, was presented the 1995
Gift of Sight Award at the Eye
Bank Association of America's
(EBAA) annual meeting June 17 in
Hilton Head, S.C. The award is
presented annually to a volunteer
who has performed above and
beyond the call of duty in support
of eye banking and corneal
donation.
Jachimczyk, who will retire in
September, is an ardent supporter of
a 1977 Texas statute that permits
medical examiners to donate the
corneas of a person who died under
circumstances requiring an inquest,
provided there is no known
objection to donation.
The Lions Eye Bank of Texas
(LEBT) at Baylor College of
Medicine, which nominated
Jachimczyk for the award, provides
more than 4,000 corneas for
transplantation and research each
year. LEBT receives approximately
58 percent of its donations from the
Harris County Medical Examiner's
office.
"Dr. Joe has helped provide
second sight to nearly 30,000
people around the world during the
last two decades," said LEBT
Executive Director Dr. Emile J.
Farge. "He is a long-time friend to
eye banking."
Jachimczyk was recognized for
his tireless efforts and innovative
(See EYE, PageS)
%
YOU HAVE TO GET OUT OF
YOUR OFFICE IF YOU WANT TO STAY IN TOUCH
WITH YOUR COMMUNITY."
Roy Cantu
- Senior Vice President/Branch Manager, IBC-Rio Grande City
"The ke> to good banking is the ability lo
make prompt, informed decisions. That requires
sla\ing on lop ol what's happening, what local
business people are talking about. Mere at IBC,
we're out before Hie sun comes up. sharing
coffee and the topics,of the day. Information
is a real asset."
- Ro\ ('milit
IBC
International Bank
ol'Commerce
,\Vc <l(> more
• t
SOPHISTICATED MISS INDEPFNDENCE-Collcge age, 1st
place, Margarita Alvarez, daughter of Mr. and Mrs! Castulo Alvarez mid
2nd place, Cindy Saenz, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Benito Saenz.
UT Pan American 1995
Dean's List
EDINBURG - One hundred and
thirty-five students, out of a total
enrollment of 13,027 in the spring
1995 semester at The University of
Texas-Pan American, earned a place
on the 4.0 (all A) deans' list.
A total of 463 students made the
3.50 to 3.99 grade-point average
honor roll, said David Zufiiga,
registrar and director of the Olfice of
Admissions and Records.
Students whose names appear on
the 4.0 honor roll, by city and
alphabetically, includc:
FALCON HEIGHTS - Maria
Cecilia de Leon Barrcra.
RIO GRANDE CITY - Melissa
Marie Garza, Ana M. Guerra and
Marisa Hinojosa.
SAN ISIDRO — Eric J. Gonzalez.
DELMITA -- Salvador Magana
and Patricia Solis.
GARCIASVII.LE -- Faustino
Lopez III.
LA GRULLA -- Serapio
Tri Hayes.
# 9
Klo (iramtr CH> • Mr \ll« i, ♦ Minimi* • Mi- Ion • \\<-l.no • Pharr • Zapata • Roma • Hrownsvllle • Haillngm • I'orl Isabel
South I'.idie Island • l .irnlo • in \nlonlo • Corpus Clirlsll • Rm kporl • I'orl l,a\ara • lta\ CII\
tlemliei I till lainn.ilnni.il II,iik slum's imftm.ilinn
Obituary
Crescenciana V. Coddington
Crescenciana V. Coddington, 93,
died June 27 at Rio Grande
Regional Hospital. Born in La
Grulla on April 19, 1902, she was
a long-time resident of Edinburg.
She was preceded in death by her
husband, William H. Coddington,
and a son, Westley Coddington.
Survivors includc three
daughters, Laramie Mathison of
Kerriville, Texas. Rebecca Wallacc
of Pensacola, Florida, and Meritus
Franklin of Addis, Louisiana, three
sons, William H. Coddington of
Miami, Arizona; Jack Coddington
of Killeen, Texas; Ross
Coddington of Edinburg: and
numerous grandchildren, great-
grandchildren, and great-great
grandchildren.
The family received frcidns at ™
Skinner's Funeral Home. A
graveside service, officiated by Rev
Stephen Weston of ST. Matthew' •;
Episcopal Church, was held at the
Starr County Cemetery in Rio
Grande City.
Pallbearers were: Pedro Diaz, Jr..
Dewey Mathison, Steve Franklin, 0
Reuben Wallace, Ramon Ortega
and William H. Coddington, Jr
Jake Margo, Jr. named
UT Goodfellow
Javier D. "Jake" Margo, Jr. was
recently selected to be one of the
1994-94 University of Texas
"Cactus Goodfellows".
Each year the names of
outstanding university students are
submitted from the various schools.
The "Cactus Goodfellows" are
honored by being highlighted in a
special section of the University of
Texas Cactus yearbook. Jake is in
the Dean's Scholars Program in his
second year at the University of
Texas at Austin majoring in
Biology/Prc-Med.
Jake is a 1993 graduate of Rio
Grande City High School and is the
son of Mr. and Mrs. Javier D.
Margo.
Jake Margo. Jr.
Women choosing "Flap" t,
method for breast surgery
More and more women arc
choosing the "flap" method for
reconstructive breast surgery, says a
plastic surgeon at Baylor College of
Medicine in Houston.
Flap surgery rebuilds the
patient's breast by transferring a
section or "flap" of soft tissue from
the abdomen to the chest wall,
replacing lost breast tissue without
the need for implants.
"The greatest advantage is that it
is the patient's own tissue, so there
is no chance for rejection," said Dr.
Louis Walker, assistant professor of
plastic surgery at Baylor. ' There
may be the need for re-operation
with implants. Eventually they
wili wear out or develop some type
of complications that have to be
revised."
Walker says once the flap is in
place "and healed,"iris re+ativcly-
problcm-free.
Walker warns, however, that the
length and difficulty of flap surgery
can create problems for some
patients. Longer hours in the
operating room increase the risks of
anesthesia-related illnesses such as
lung congestion and pneumonia.
Complications may also exist from
the removal of abdominal tissue or ft
in the flap of tissue itself.
"Hernias can develop at the tissue
donor site on the abdomen, or you
can lose part of the flap it some
areas ol latly tissue lose their blood
supply and die," said Walker.
Time and cost arc other factors
patients should consider. Recovery
from flap surgery ranges from six
weeks to six months with an
average one-week hospital slay. Ii #/
can cost up to seven limes as much
as implant surgery, which is often
performed on an outpatient basis foi
around $5,000.
Walker stresses that patients
should select a surgeon who makes
them comfortable. "It should be
more than just a matter "oC
convenience, talk to as many ^
surgeons as needed lo get a good -
conscnsus."
Cod
the
two|
Tc;
(TA
r[
thcl
purl
si a I
mill
wil
in I
real
pal
()tf
lie j
I u|
of I
SI,
qui
•>
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Roberts, Kenneth. Rio Grande Herald (Rio Grande City, Tex.), Vol. 82, No. 28, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 13, 1995, newspaper, July 13, 1995; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth195504/m1/4/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rio Grande City Public Library.