From now through December 16, 2015, physician anesthesiologists and other providers who believe they have received an incorrect assessment under PQRS or the Value Modifier program may request an informal review from CMS. In 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will apply a negative payment adjustment to eligible professionals (EPs) who did not […]
Read MoreWritten by Samuel Metz, MD Contrary to what talk show hosts may tell us, single-payor health care was not created by foreign socialists intent on destroying the fabric of our American free enterprise system. Henry J. Kaiser, an American capitalist watching his construction workers labor in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest, had three innovative […]
Read MoreAnesthesiologists at Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston, have documented the positive results from a mid-2013 switch to a “morphine first” policy, which they implemented in the wake of mounting reports of serious adverse events from hydromorphone that were highlighted in a 2012 alert by the Massachusetts State Board of Medicine. At the end of June […]
Read MoreThe FDA issued a warning about possible infections associated with heater–cooler devices and issued steps that health care providers and facilities could take to mitigate risks to patients. Heater–cooler devices are used during cardiothoracic surgeries, as well as other medical and surgical procedures to warm or cool a patient to optimize medical care and improve […]
Read MorePatients who receive statins along with beta-blockers prior to cardiac surgery do better than those given no such medication, according to a new study. Senior author Peyman Benharash, MD, told Reuters Health by email, “professional society guidelines have mandated the use of beta blockers in patients taking these agents prior to cardiac surgery. Our group, […]
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