Sec. 10.25.10.08. On-Call Payment

A. Eligibility. The Fund will reimburse trauma centers' on-call costs to maintain surgeons on-call in conformance with MIEMSS' regulations at COMAR 30.08.05-30.08.14 for the minimum number of trauma physicians required to be on-call. Trauma centers are eligible for on-call payments as follows:

(1) The Level I trauma center and pediatric trauma center are eligible for on-call payments for on-call hours provided by trauma specialties designated in §B of this regulation on or after July 1, 2008;

(2) Level II trauma centers are eligible for on-call payments for on-call hours provided by trauma specialties designated in §C of this regulation;

(3) Level III trauma centers are eligible for on-call payments for on-call hours provided by trauma specialties designated in §D of this regulation; and

(4) Maryland Trauma Specialty Referral Centers are eligible for on-call payments for on-call hours provided by trauma specialties designated in §E of this regulation on or after July 1, 2008.

B. To determine the amount of on-call payments to a Level I trauma center or pediatric trauma center from the Fund, the following apply:

(1) The cost incurred by a Level I trauma center or pediatric trauma center to maintain trauma surgeons, pediatric trauma surgeons, neurosurgeons, and orthopedic surgeons on-call shall be reimbursed at the lesser of a trauma center's actual on-call costs, or up to 30 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalent's hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services;

(2) A Level I trauma center shall be eligible for a maximum 4,380 on-call hours each fiscal year beginning July 1, 2008; and

(3) A pediatric trauma center shall be eligible for a maximum 4,380 on-call hours each fiscal year beginning July 1, 2008.

C. To determine the amount of on-call payments to a Level II trauma center from the Fund, the following apply:

(1) The cost incurred by a Level II trauma center to maintain trauma surgeons, neurosurgeons, and orthopedic surgeons on-call shall be reimbursed at the lesser of a trauma center's actual on-call costs or up to 30 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalent's hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; and

(2) A Level II trauma center shall be eligible for a maximum 24,500 on-call hours each fiscal year beginning July 1, 2006.

D. To determine the amount of on-call payments to a Level III trauma center from the Fund, the following apply:

(1) The cost incurred by a Level III trauma center to maintain anesthesiologists, neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons, and trauma surgeons on-call shall be reimbursed at the lesser of a trauma center's actual on-call costs or up to 35 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalents hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services;

(2) A Level III trauma center shall be eligible for a maximum 35,040 on-call hours each fiscal year beginning July 1, 2006.

E. To determine the amount of on-call payments to a Maryland Specialty Referral Center from the Fund, the following apply:

(1) The cost incurred by a Maryland Trauma Specialty Referral Center to maintain trauma surgeons on-call for the Johns Hopkins Health System Burn Program shall be reimbursed at the lesser of the trauma center's actual on-call costs or up to 30 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalent's hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services;

(2) The cost incurred by a Maryland Trauma Specialty Referral Center to maintain trauma surgeons on-call for the Eye Trauma Center at the Wilmer Eye Institute at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, the cost incurred to maintain ophthalmologists on-call shall be reimbursed at the lesser of the trauma center's actual on-call costs or up to 30 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalent's hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services;

(3) The cost incurred by a Maryland Trauma Specialty Referral Center to maintain trauma surgeons on-call for the Curtis National Hand Center at Union Memorial Hospital, shall be reimbursed at the lesser of the trauma center's actual on-call costs or up to 30 percent of the reasonable compensation equivalent's hourly rate for the specialty, inflated to the current year by the physician compensation component of the Medicare Economic Index as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; and

(4) A Maryland Specialty Referral Center trauma center shall be eligible for a maximum 2,190 hours of trauma on-call per fiscal year, beginning July 1, 2008.

F. The trauma center shall apply for payment from the Fund by submitting a semiannual on-call services application within 30 days after the end of the reporting cycle.

G. The on-call services application shall list on-call costs paid to trauma physicians at the trauma center during the reporting cycle. The on-call services application shall contain at least the following information:

(1) The name and trauma level of the trauma center;

(2) The name of each trauma physician providing on-call coverage;

(3) The specialty of each trauma physician providing on-call coverage;

(4) The amount of time available on-call for each physician; and

(5) The amount paid in on-call stipends to each physician.