Medicare

Members of Congress may be ready to start work on legislation to change how Medicare pays physicians – and avoid a last-minute yearly ritual of trying to offset cuts issued by CMS, according to Robert Blaser.

Results showed high Medicare hospital star ratings and recognition on the top 50 orthopedic hospital rankings from U.S. News & World Report were associated with reduced likelihood of readmission penalties after total joint arthroplasty.

The number rheumatologists in adult care rose 23% from 2009 to 2020, while the number of advanced practice providers in the specialty exploded by as much as 141% during the same time, according to data published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

In its biannual report to Congress, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission recommended that payments to physicians should increase but a planned 1.8% boost in the bundled payment rate for dialysis services was adequate for 2025.

Medicare Part D spending on prescriptions filled at in-house pharmacies nearly quintupled from 2011 and 2019, topping out at $1.6 billion, with increases concentrated among high-cost drugs, according to data published in JAMA Network Open.

Legislation approved earlier this month by Congress and the Biden administration to avert a government shutdown included a measure to reduce the impact of planned Medicare payment cuts to physicians for 2024.

In this edition, race identified as risk factor for VTE, FDA approves Rybrevant for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer and more.

Healio | Nephrology News & Issues recently interviewed Mahesh Krishnan, MD, MPH, MBA, the new chair of Kidney Care Partners, about goals for the advocacy group in the coming year.

SAN FRANCISCO — Despite an increase in the number of prophylactic fixation procedures of the femur performed among Medicare patients from 2000 to 2021, results showed the average reimbursement of this procedure decreased by nearly 50%.

SAN FRANCISCO — Results presented here showed shoulder and elbow procedures for Medicare patients performed at ASCs had greater cost savings compared with the same procedures performed at hospital outpatient departments.