How Should Congress Pay for Repealing the Sustainable Growth Rate?
Guest post from Harold D. Miller President and CEO, Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform Pittsburgh, PA A bipartisan, bicameral bill was announced earlier this month as the result of a joint effort by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, House Ways and Means Committee, and Senate Finance Committee to repeal and replace […]
Cross Post: The Future of Medical Specialists under the Affordable Care Act
From time to time on Neurosurgery Blog you will see us cross-posting pieces from other health blogs when we believe they really hit the mark on an issue. Today’s post originally appeared on the American Thinker blog. The post addresses the all-important topic of the future of medical specialists under the Affordable Care Act that is right […]
Death and the Doctor: Under-valued Skills
Guest Post from Deborah L. Benzil, MD, FACS, FAANS Member, AANS Board of Directors Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee MKMG Columbia University Medical Center Mt Kisco, New York One obvious but often-overlooked thing constantly challenges practicing physicians: DEATH. While we all know that death is inevitable, death intrudes into every physician interaction with […]
All I Wanted for Christmas!
Guest Post from Deborah L. Benzil, MD, FACS, FAANS Member, AANS Board of Directors Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee Mt Kisco, New York At this time of year, we are often inundated with saccharin comments about holiday giving. This year, I have decided I will request a simple gift that honors the real […]
Draft Framework for Repealing the SGR: The Cure May be Worse than the Disease
On Halloween, the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees released a bipartisan, bicameral draft proposal to repeal and replace Medicare’s sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. The proposal would permanently repeal the SGR update mechanism, reform the fee-for-service payment system through greater focus on value over volume, and encourage participation in alternative payment models. […]
What’s New in the World of GME?
Some of you may have already seen the following developments related to Graduate Medical Education (GME), but we wanted to pass them on in the event you missed them. COGME releases New GME Report In August, the Council on Graduate Medical Education (COGME) issued its 21st Report, entitled “Improving Value in Graduate Medical Education.” Authorized […]
Efforts to Repeal the SGR Continue
Over the past few months there has been a lot of activity on the SGR front, and the AANS and CNS have been at the forefront of discussions on the best way to fix Medicare’s flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) payment formula. Neurosurgery is urging Congress to incorporate the following elements in any SGR replacement […]
Neurosurgery to Washington Monthly: Who’s REALLY Getting a “Special Deal?”
In the recently published July/August edition of Washington Monthly an article by Haley Sweetland Edwards entitled, “Special Deal” is completely outrageous in its attempt to paint specialists as a “shadowy cartel of doctors that control Medicare.” Ms. Edwards’ efforts to vilify the AMA/Specialty Society Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) are misleading, inaccurate, and misguided. […]
Study Finds Medicare Spending Variations Due to Health Differences NOT “Overtreatment”
For many years, healthcare policy researchers have put forward the notion that Medicare spending variations across the U.S. are solely due to wasteful practices and overtreatment — an idea that neurosurgery has repeatedly challenged. A recent study, published in the journal Medical Care — Research and Review, agrees with us that this simply is not […]
House Energy and Commerce Committee Passes SGR Reform Legislation
Today, by a vote of 51 to zero, the House Energy and Commerce Committee passed H.R. 2810, the Medicare Patient Access and Quality Improvement Act. This bipartisan legislation to repeal and replace Medicare’s sustainable growth rate (SGR) payment system is sponsored by committee leaders Reps. Michael Burgess, MD (R-TX), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Fred Upton (R-MI), […]