Compared to 2017, fewer physicians reported being worse off financially in 2018, according to Medical Economics' "90th Annual Physician Report."  By Angie Stewart - 4/23/19

North Carolina representatives introduced legislation to repeal the state's certificate-of-need laws related to standalone surgery centers, Reflector.com reports.  By Eric Oliver - 4/23/19

Medicare's Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will be able to pay full benefits until 2026, but the Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund is expected to have adequate financing in all years, according to a report from the Medicare Board of Trustees.  By Angie Stewart - 4/22/19

South Miami-based Baptist Health South Florida signed an agreement with Aetna to cover its commercial health plan members.  By Eric Oliver - 4/22/19

The mind-boggling complexities of commercial payer contracts coupled with ever-changing Medicare reimbursement policies make negotiating contracts to attain appropriate reimbursement an uphill battle for ASCs.  By Angie Stewart - 4/22/19

Minnetonka, Minn.-based UnitedHealthcare and Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Optum are extending support to health plan beneficiaries affected by deadly tornadoes and thunderstorms ravaging Texas.  By Angie Stewart - 4/19/19

Jho Outlaw, senior vice president of revenue cycle services for ASC software company Surgical Information Systems and Jessica Nelson, director of revenue cycle services for SIS shared their insights on how to effectively collect payment after a patient's surgery.  By Rachel Popa - 4/19/19

Jho Outlaw, senior vice president of revenue cycle services for ASC software company Surgical Information Systems and Jessica Nelson, director of revenue cycle services for SIS weighed in on how to improve patient collection after surgery.  By Rachel Popa - 4/18/19

Thomas K. Miller, MD, is the sports medicine chief at Carilion Clinic Institute for Orthopaedic and Neurosciences in Roanoke, Va.  By Laura Dyrda - 4/18/19

AdvancedMD is the best service for ensuring medical practices get paid on time, according to a ranking by TechRadar.  By Angie Stewart - 4/18/19

The number of states and territories implementing value-based payment initiatives has grown seven-fold in five years, with New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont leading the charge, according to Change Healthcare.  By Angie Stewart - 4/18/19

Lisa Davis, administrator of The Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery in Munster, Ind., examines patient collection trends in ASCs and where she sees the biggest opportunity for future growth.  By Laura Dyrda - 4/16/19

Office-based vasectomies are associated with lower costs than vasectomies performed in ASCs, according to a study published in Urology.  By Angie Stewart - 4/16/19

Minnetonka, Minn.-based UnitedHealth Group reported strong first-quarter growth, with Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Optum revenues hitting $26.4 billion.  By Angie Stewart - 4/16/19

Like other independent practices, Oakland Park, Fla.-based Midland Medical had difficulty finding the time and resources to fulfill quality reporting tasks, monitor patient outcomes and track costs, according to RevCycleIntelligence.com.  By Angie Stewart - 4/15/19

The percentage of physicians involved in accountable care organizations dipped from 36 percent in 2017 to 28 percent in 2019, according to Medscape's "Physician Compensation Report 2019."  By Angie Stewart - 4/12/19

ASCs should evaluate billing performance and implement process improvements at the end of every financial quarter, according to Lakewood, Colo.-based Pinnacle III, an ASC management company.  By Rachel Popa - 4/10/19

Patients largely consider surgical cost to be the most important factor when choosing a provider, according to an Advisory Board report.  By Angie Stewart - 4/8/19

Payers are leading the outmigration of care by steering patients from hospital outpatient departments to ASCs, according to an Advisory Board report.  By Angie Stewart - 4/5/19

CMS penalized San Antonio-based University Health System for having hospital-acquired infection and patient injury rates in the bottom 25 percent nationally in 2018, Rivard Report reports.  By Eric Oliver - 4/5/19