Anesthesia

CMS is establishing four new, more specific modifiers that will eventually replace modifier 59 (distinct procedural service) and the new modifiers will be effective on Jan. 1, according to an Anesthesia Business Consultants blog post.

Anesthesia group mergers and acquisition activity has been in full swing in 2014. Here are 22 transactions that occurred so far this year, divided by acquiring company.

Physician-owned company Somnia Anesthesia has been chosen to provide anesthesia services at Memorial Medical Center of Las Cruces (N.M.), according to a Las Cruces Sun-News report.

Whether in the outpatient or hospital setting, in the operating room the surgeon and the anesthesiologist are the leaders of patient care. To deliver high-quality care, it's essential they work in tandem and maintain a strong professional relationship.

New research has found that a patient may experience "accidental awareness" during general anesthesia in about one in every 19,000 cases, according to a report by The Advisory Board Company.

TeamHealth acquired the operations of Tampa-based Florida Gulf-to-Bay Anesthesiology Associates.

Arlington-based Texas Health Resources named Jeffrey L. Canose, MD, senior executive vice president and COO.

The American Society of Anesthesiologists is urging patients and physician anesthesiologists to have a serious conversation about the anesthesia care delivery plan ahead of a procedure.

Ervin Yen, MD, a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists won the Republican primary runoff election for the Oklahoma District 40 Senate seat, according to an ASA report.

On Aug. 28, comedian Joan Rivers underwent outpatient surgery at a New York ambulatory surgery center to repair her vocal cords. She went into cardiac arrest during the procedure and was transferred to a nearby hospital. She died on Sept.…