Specialty Societies Submit Letter in Support of CMS Prior Authorization Proposals On February 13, 2023, ISASS submitted comments to CMS on proposed changes released on January 30, 2023, regarding Medicare Advantage Prior Authorization rules and regulations, including audit standards, as part of a multi-society joint letter. In the final rule, the agency announced it will...
Read the Vertebral Columns Winter 2023 Issue As always, this latest issue of Vertebral Columns covers a wide range of topics relevant to spine surgeons. In this issue, learn about the benefits and challenges of ambulatory surgical centers from the spine surgeon’s perspective, the role of epigenetics in spine surgery, updates in lateral and transforaminal...
Article Highlights Trend of Orthopedic Surgery Practices Being Purchased by Private Equity Groups A January 2023 Kaiser Health News articlediscusses the recent trend of orthopedic surgery practices, including spine surgery practices, being purchased by private equity (PE) firms. The article focuses on recent examples and includes discussion of financial benefits for practices as well as...
Omnibus HHS Announces Stricter Auditing Standards for Medicare Advantage Plans On January 30, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published a final rule on Medicare Advantage audit standards. In the final rule, the agency announced it will strike the fee-for-service adjuster from the risk adjustment data validation audits (RAD-VA), a tool that...