Today’s Top Story
CMS releases final rule on ACO payments under MSSP.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a final rule designed to improve how Medicare pays accountable care organizations (ACOs) in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) by recognizing cost variation at the regional level. Under the rule, CMS will now set ACO performance benchmarks using regional, rather than national, spending growth trends. The efficiency of individual ACOs will be measured against other providers in the same regional market, rather than just against an ACO’s own past performance. Among other changes, ACOs that participate under Track 1 of the MSSP will be granted the option of extending their initial agreement for 1 year before taking on financial risk under Track 2 or Track 3. In addition, the final rule defines timeframes and other criteria for reopening of a determination of ACO shared savings or shared losses to correct financial reconciliation calculations; for example, ACOs will have 4 years to challenge an initial determination of shared savings or shared losses for good cause.
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Read the CMS statement…
View the CMS fact sheet…
Read the final rule…
Learn more about the MSSP…
Other News
Study: Biofilms may make treatment of PJI more challenging.
Data from a study published in the July issue of the journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research suggest that antibiotic-tolerant biofilm may be a factor in poor results following irrigation and débridement for acute periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) in total knee arthroplasty (TKA) patients. The research team cultured methicillin-sensitive biofilm on TKA materials and exposed the biofilm to increasing doses of cefazolin. Although live biofilm mass was reduced by exposure to cefazolin when compared with biofilm mass in controls, the researchers found no further reduction after higher doses. They note that at the highest concentration tested, residual viable biofilm remained, and there were no differences in percent biofilm survival among cobalt-chromium, polymethylmethacrylate, and polyethylene materials. The research team writes that tolerance was a phenotypic phenomenon, as increasing cefazolin exposure did not result in changes in minimum inhibitory concentration compared with controls.
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Study: Is there a link between rhBMP and cancer?
A study published online in the journal Spine finds no significant difference in cancer rates among spinal fusion patients treated with or without recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein (rhBMP). The researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study of 16,914 spine fusion patients, 4,246 of whom received rhBMP. During the study period, 449 patients received a diagnosis of cancer, including 117 patients (2.76 percent) in the rhBMP group and 332 patients (2.62 percent) in the no rhBMP group. In addition, the researchers found no differences in cancer rates between the two groups in subgroups defined on the basis of site of fusion or surgical method. However, the researchers note the relatively limited duration of follow-up data, and write that “examination of cancer incidence following rhBMP administration must continue beyond just the first several years in order to adequately assess the potential of rhBMP to influence the occurrence of one or more types of malignancy.”
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Read the abstract…
Three more defendants plead guilty in spine surgery fraud case.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) states that nine defendants have now pleaded guilty in a case involving nearly $600 million in fraudulent billing for spinal surgeries. Healthcare IT News reports that three defendants have joined six others who have already pleaded guilty and are cooperating in an ongoing investigation that may involve dozens of surgeons, including orthopaedists.
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Orthopaedics shows highest retention rate among medical students from matriculation to graduation.
A survey released by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) suggests that only 26.0 percent of medical students retain their initial preferred residency specialty over the course of medical school. Among all specialties, orthopaedics had the highest percentage (53.6 percent) of students who initially indicated they planned to pursue that field and continued to do so. The researchers compared responses for 10,353 graduating medical students who completed the 2015 Graduation Questionnaire as well as the Matriculating Student Questionnaire (MSQ), which matriculants are invited to complete during the summer prior to their first year of medical school.
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View the AAMC report…
NIH grant program supports future leaders in research on aging.
The National Institutes for Health (NIH) has announced the availability of Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Subspecialists’ Transition to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR). The goal of GEMSSTAR is to provide support for early-stage physician-scientists, trained in medical or surgical specialties, to launch careers as future leaders in research on aging or in geriatrics. GEMSSTAR provides small grants to conduct transdisciplinary research on aging or in geriatrics research that will yield pilot data for subsequent aging- or geriatrics-focused research projects.
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The American Geriatrics Society offers a supplemental grant program for recipients of GEMSSTAR funding.
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Call for volunteers: Research Development Committee.
Aug. 8 is the last day to submit your application for a position on the Research Development Committee (two member-at-large, one resident member openings). The Research Development Committee oversees the annual research symposia, the Kappa Delta orthopaedic research awards, the Clinician Scholar Career Development Program, the annual Research Capitol Hill Days advocacy event, and the Unified Orthopaedic Research Agenda. Applicants for the member-at-large position must be active fellows or associate members basic science. Applicants for the resident member position must be PGY-1, PGY-2, or PGY-3.
Learn more and submit your application…
