On June 18, the federal government charged 243 individuals with participating in a Medicare fraud scheme totaling approximately $712 million in false billings. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force, a joint initiative between the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Health and Human Services, led the investigation.

Providing patients with educational materials or an interactive intervention when they were discharged for stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) helped reduce the time they waited before heading to the emergency department following subsequent stroke, TIA or stroke-like symptoms.

The Joint Commission unveiled proposed requirements for an optional advanced certification program for Comprehensive Cardiac Centers in accredited hospitals. The commission will accept comments through July 16.

An FDA advisory panel recommended the approval of alirocumab and evolocumab last week, and the cardiovascular medications are expected to be approved this summer. However, the drugs may cost up to $10,000 per year and may be too expensive for some patients, USA Today reports.

On June 9 and 10, the FDA’s Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee recommended the approval of alirocumab and evolocumab to lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in patients. Two members of the committee who did not recommend approval for either drug spoke with Cardiovascular Business about their concerns.

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is calling for a speedy issuing a final rule on Meaningful Use, pointing out that there is little time to adjust.

Why swim with the sharks if you can float above them in uncontested waters? One medical center is taking a “Blue Ocean” approach to its transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) program after its success with a liver initiative netted $1.1 million and saved the healthcare system $54 million. 

Accountability and autonomy can go hand in hand. Citing a lesson learned from his military service, Christopher White, MD, showed that cardiologists at Ochsner earned autonomy through a program that made them accountable for resource use.