Here are seven key stories on outpatient spine trends and news.
217 ASCs where orthopedic surgery case volume exceeds 2k
More than 200 ambulatory surgery centers reported 2,000 or more orthopedic cases to the CMS Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program in 2015. Check out the spine-focused ASCs that made the list, here.
Texas Spine & Joint Hospital now under Baylor Scott & White Health umbrella
Dallas-based Baylor Scott & White Holdings and Tyler-based Texas Spine & Joint Hospital entered into a partnership, according to Tyler Morning Telegraph. On Aug. 1, Baylor Scott & White acquired a majority stake in Texas Spine & Joint Hospital. A hospital spokesperson said they will expand into clinics and outpatient surgery centers under the partnership.
Merger: Advanced Pain Medicine now under Commonwealth Pain & Spine umbrella
Lexington, Ky.-based Advanced Pain Medicine merged with Louisville, Ky.-based Commonwealth Pain & Spine. Advanced Pain Medicine will now fall under the Commonwealth Pain & Spine’s conglomerate of clinics. The merger came to fruition due to Advanced Pain Medicine's Saroj Dubal, MD, deciding to retire.
Renew Spine to form management services organization
Renew Spinal Care, a physician network focused on minimally invasive spine surgeons, retained a prominent national law firm and lobbying group in preparation for forming a management services organization. Renew is a member of Prime Health Services and Three Rivers Provider Network, which provide access to spine care for self-insured companies.
Key thoughts on the economics of outpatient spine surgery
Spine surgery in an ASC can have economic benefits, as ASCs typically cost less than hospitals, and studies show outpatient surgery centers are associated with a similar or lower complication rate than the inpatient setting. Check out five studies, here, on the economics of outpatient spine surgery.
Joimax opens endoscopic spine surgery training and education center in California
Joimax opened its new Training and Education Center in Irvine, Calif., dedicated to physician education and training. The demand for joimax's endoscopic procedures in spine surgery has increased this year, after CMS released a new CPT reimbursement code for endoscopic spine procedures Jan. 1.
No fusion, no problem — How coflex is changing the lumbar spinal stenosis treatment field
During a Paradigm Spine-sponsored workshop, Hallett Mathews, MD, Paradigm Spine chief medical officer, provided an overview of the coflex Interlaminar Stabilization device, and how surgeons implant the device after a direct surgical decompression procedure. Read about the device, here.