A MedAxiom survey of more than 150 cardiology practices reveals that 60 percent have either already fully integrated or are considering integration with a hospital; only 28 percent said they are not currently considering consolidation or will never consider it.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will further delay enforcement of the Red Flags Rule until Dec. 31 at the request of several members of Congress to narrow the scope of the regulation. The rule was set to take effect today.

The current pace at which U.S. cardiology physician practices are merging with hospitals and integrated delivery networks (IDNs) has only quickened since the massive CMS cuts, which took effect at the beginning of 2010. According to a recent American College of Cardiology (ACC) survey, 54 percent of practices reported integration is being actively pursued or on the horizon. Executives and cardiologists from Minneapolis Heart Institute (MHI) and Piedmont Heart Institute (PHI)two geographically different practices, with varied models of integration, governance, physician compensation and vendor contractscame together to discuss these issues, along with an attorney, who has brokered many integrations on behalf of physicians.

The financial outlook of private cardiology practices has dramatically changed in the last few years. While many groups have entered or are considering some type of hospital integration model, many would like to remain in private practice. Smaller groups are particularly vulnerable to market forces, and yet, they are finding new ways to creatively bring in more patients and revenue.

The financial pressures associated with declining reimbursements and rising operational costs on private cardiology practices has resulted in increased migration of practices to hospital affiliation.

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.