Atlas Shrugged Retold
Guest Post from Deborah L. Benzil, MD, FACS, FAANS Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee Vice Chair, Neurosurgery Cleveland Clinic Foundation Cleveland, OH “I started my life with a single absolute: that the world was mine to shape in the image of my highest values and never to be given up to a lesser […]
A Better, Kinder, More Effective MOC Product
Richard G. Ellenbogen, MD, FACS Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington Medicine Director, American Board of Neurological Surgery Specialty boards, such as the American Board of Neurological Surgery (ABNS), were created as entities independent of the government and medical specialty societies to establish criteria and a process of establishing the competence […]
Cross Post – Super Macranomics
From time to time on Neurosurgery Blog, you will see us cross-posting or linking to items from other places when we believe they hit the mark on an issue. Since we are smack dab in the middle of our focus on topics related to regulatory relief we wanted to bring attention to an article series […]
The FDA and Regulation – Neurosurgery Partners with FDA for Patient Safety, Innovation and Regulatory Reform
Clemens M. Schirmer, MD, PhD, FAANS, FAHA (left) Vice-Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee Geisinger Wilkes Barre, PA Catherine Jeakle Hill (right) Senior Manager for Regulatory Affairs, Washington Office American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) The entity known as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is familiar to most […]
MIPS, Cost Measures and Innovation from a Neurosurgical Perspective
Clemens M. Schirmer, MD, PhD, FAANS, FACS, FAHA Vice-Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee Geisinger Wilkes Barre, PA The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) is a law that reformed the Medicare payment system by repealing the sustainable growth rate formula (SGR), which calculated payment cuts for physicians. It also created […]
Unnecessary Regulatory Burden: Appropriate Use Criteria for Advanced Diagnostic Imaging
Ann R. Stroink, MD, CPE, FAANS Chair, AANS/CNS Washington Committee System Medical Director, Neurosciences Quality and Educational Program Development Senior Neurosurgeon CINHS Central Illinois Neuro Health Science Bloomington, IL Ordering X-rays or other diagnostic imaging used to be purposeful and easy. Physicians, whether primary care or specialists, would see the patient, take a history and perform a […]
King Arthur or Don Quixote: What Kind of Knight are EHR Systems?
Guest Post from Deborah L. Benzil, MD, FACS, FAANS Chair, AANS/CNS Communications and Public Relations Committee Vice Chair, Neurosurgery Cleveland Clinic Foundation Cleveland, OH Electronic Health Records (EHRs) danced into the medical arena like a knight in shining armor. Promised were the magical stuff of legends, like King Arthur and Excalibur including: Legibility; Speed; Cost […]
Cost Post – Impact of Insurance Precertification on Neurosurgery Practice and Health Care Delivery
Pre-authorization, prior authorization or precertification is a tool insurance companies use to limit the amount of services they provide for their customers. In essence, it’s a simple way to reduce costs by delaying or not approving planned, non-emergency (elective) surgery for patients who need it. The inefficiency and lack of transparency associated with prior authorization […]
EHR Interconnectivity Challenges Continue to Impact Patient Care
Guest post written by multiple neurosurgeons and neurosurgical residents from Stanford University Medical Center. Eric S. Sussman, MD, Neurosurgery Resident; Arjun V. Pendharkar, MD, Neurosurgery Resident; Allen L. Ho, MD, Neurosurgery Resident; Anand Veeravagu, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Assistant Professor Orthopedic Surgery and Director of Minimally Invasive NeuroSpine Surgery; and John K. Ratliff, MD, […]
Cross Post – Bipartisan Payment System Improvements Mean More Physician Participation and Better Patient Care
Since we are smack dab in the middle of our focus-month on physician regulatory relief, we wanted to highlight an opinion piece published by The Hill featuring the Alliance of Specialty Medicine and neurosurgery’s own Alex B. Valadka, MD, FAANS, FACS, president of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. The article, “Bipartisan payment system improvements […]