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Editor's Note There is wide cost variation for five common surgical procedures in the US, this study finds. Cost observed-to-expected ratios ranged widely: 14.9-fold for colectomy 5.5-fold for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) 12.5-fold for lung resection 10.6-fold for total knee arthroplasty 28.0-fold for cesarean section. High-cost hospitals were more…
Editor's Note This meta-analysis found that patients at higher risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), as determined by preoperative STOP-Bang screening, had a higher risk of postoperative adverse events and longer length of hospital stay, compared with lower risk-OSA patients. The analysis included 10 studies with 23,609 patients (7,877 high-risk…
Editor's Note Though the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is rolling back mandatory bundled-payment programs, it is expected to release more voluntary, outpatient-focused programs, which shifts power from hospitals to physicians, the August 21 Healthcare Finance News reports. Physician-focused does not require a hospitalization, which creates a complete…
Editor's Note The ECRI Institute on August 23 announced a new free white paper, “Value Analysis: Best Practices for Navigating the Evidence Maze,” to help value analysis committees bring an objective, systematic approach to the decision-making process for health technologies and interventions. The white paper includes three case studies that…
Editor's Note The Veterans Affairs Medical Center, in Buffalo, New York, is notifying 526 patients that they may be at risk of infection from improperly cleaned endoscopes, the August 16 Buffalo News reports. A recent hospital review of endoscope disinfection processes found that steps in the manufacturer’s instructions may not…
Editor's Note ChartLogic (Salt Lake City) is reporting that as of August 9, 2017, a total of 419 ICD-10 codes were added, 273 codes were revised, and 123 codes were being deleted, according to the August 15 Becker’s Hospital CFO Report. The changes are slated for implementation on October 1,…
Editor's Note Cybersecurity experts are warning that Ransomware 2.0 is coming, and healthcare needs to be prepared, the August 8 Healthcare IT News reports. Ransomware 2.0 combines ransomware with a worm, which allows it to move laterally or across internal and external networks. Because the next wave of attacks will…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced August 7 that hospitals and critical access hospitals participating in Medicare’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program will submit their “meaningful use” data via QualityNet rather than the EHR Incentive Program Registration and Attestation System beginning January 2, 2018,…
Editor's Note The Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, was ranked the nation’s top hospital by US News & World Report in its 2017-2018 Honor Roll of Best Hospitals. The Honor Roll consists of 20 hospitals with the highest combined overall scores in 16 medical-surgical specialties. Cleveland Clinic was second, Johns Hopkins…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on August 2 issued the FY 2018 Medicare Inpatient Prospective Payment System final rule, which updates Medicare payment and policies when patients are discharged from hospitals. The rule increases rates by 1.2%. This includes an initial market-basket update of 2.7%…
