Author: Patsy Newitt

Optum, parent company of ASC chain SCA Health, will lay off 129 employees as it closes a Change Healthcare facility in Toledo, Ohio, according to regulatory documents filed with the state May 16.

Here are three anesthesiologists making headlines that Becker's has reported on in the last two weeks:

Anesthesiologist Sebo Amirkhanian Namagerdy, MD, is the highest-paid official in the county, the Los Angeles Times reported May 16. 

A physician in East Norwich, N.Y., has been ordered to close his practice and surrender his license for illegal opioid prescription, News 12 Long Island reported May 16. 

Optum's ASC arm, Deerfiled, Ill.-based SCA Health, quietly purchased at least two cardiovascular providers in 2023, National Cardiovascular Partners and Pivotal Healthcare. 

The ambulatory growth of Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, parent company of ASC giant United Surgical Partners International, is surging, and the company has big plans for the future. 

Physician groups are continuing to consolidate, facing increasing pressure to access economies of scale.  

Hospitals and health systems are increasingly looking to ASCs for growth — forming partnerships and joint ventures for ASC development as procedures continue to migrate to outpatient settings. 

Three bills in the Mississippi legislature that would allow advanced practice registered nurses to practice without physician supervision have been killed, according to a May 16 report from the American Medical Association. 

A Muncie, Ind. physician has pleaded guilty to Medicaid fraud, among other charges, Muncie Star Press reported May 14.