It was welcome news in May when CMS announced it had corrected some miscalculations to the 2010 Physician Fee Schedule, which resulted in a 16 percent payment increase for SPECT imaging.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, in collaboration with the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and the Society of Hospital Medicine, has selected 15 physician organizations to take part in a statewide initiative to reduce hospital readmissions and ER visit for Michiganders.

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati showed that while incidences of ischemic stroke in whites in the greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky areas dropped, they increased for blacks, according to a long-term study published May 20 in Stroke.

Cardiovascular Associates, with more than 30 specialists practicing in six area locations, is partnering with Wellmont Health System to serve heart patients in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia. The relationship was finalized earlier this month.

The Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office for Civil Rights  in response to the request for information on the new HIPAA privacy rule for disclosures under the HITECH Act, suggesting that the new accounting for disclosures requirements are burdensome and onerous for medical practices.

DENVERJohn D. Day, MD, from the Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Salt Lake City, revealed study findings to Cardiovascular Business News that atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation reduces the risk of stroke, mortality, Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia. According to two new studies presented at the Heart Rhythm Societys 31st annual scientific sessions, patients with AF treated with catheter ablation are less likely to develop Alzheimers disease or other forms of dementia and have a significantly reduced risk of stroke and death compared to patients with AF who are not treated with ablation.

DENVERWhile oversight committees and others have concerns about medical/industry financial relationship, Susan J. Thompson, JD, of Boston Scientific, said these associations have the potential to lead to better patient outcomes, during a presentation here Wednesday at the 31st annual Heart Rhythm Society scientific sessions.

DENVER--Marc Lahiri, MD, a cardiac electrophysiologist from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, told Cardiovascular Business News about his study that demonstrates correlation between race and development of atrial fibrillation (AF), presented Thursday at the 31st annual scientific sessions of the Heart Rhythm Society. Specifically, he and his colleagues found a significantly lower incidence of post-operative AF compared to Caucasians, despite a higher prevalence of risk factors for this type of arrhythmia.