Here are eight things for spinal surgeons to know for Aug. 18, 2016.
Aetna to pull out of 11 ACA exchanges; expects losses reaching $300M
Aetna will stop acquiring individual Affordable Care Act plans in 11 state exchanges. This year, Aetna offered plans in 15 states. The company's latest decision to exit 11 exchanges will leave customers in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Florida left to seek coverage elsewhere. Aetna said it anticipated losses totaling $300 million on these state exchanges earlier this year.
Zimmer Biomet acquires CD Diagnostics; ramps up musculoskeletal diagnostic offerings
Warsaw, Ind.-based Zimmer Biomet is acquiring CD Diagnostics, a Claymont, Del.-based company developing immunoassays and biomarker testing. The two companies partnered in 2012 to co-develop musculoskeletal healthcare diagnostics. They did not disclose financial details of the transaction.
Louisiana ranks as likeliest place for physicians to face lawsuits
Zippia analyzed the National Practitioner Data Bank to discover where physicians are most likely to get sued in the United States. Louisiana had the highest rate of suits per residents, with the state having 44.1 suits per 100,000 residents. Hawaii had the least number of suits, with only 4.9 suits per 100,000 residents.
Medtronic dives deeper with $20M second tranche investment in Mazor Robotics
Dublin, Ireland-based Medtronic completed its second tranche investment in Caesarea, Israel-based Mazor Robotics. The second tranche investment totals $20 million. Medtronic has now purchased a total of 1.96 million ADS, accounting for 7.27 percent of Mazor's issued and outstanding share capital on a fully diluted basis. This totals $31.9 million.
Smartphones effective for spinal fracture telemedicine diagnosis
A new study published in The Spine Journal examines the reliability of smartphone-based teleradiology when examining thoracolumbar spine fractures. For the study, an iPhone 6 smartpone was used to capture CT scans from a computer screen displaying PACS. Then researchers used the WhatsApp instant messaging system to send video clips of the scan to five surgeons' personal smart phones. The smartphone evaluation is readily accessible, simple and inexpensive; the researchers believe it can be reliably used between emergency physician and orthopedic or neurological residents with offsite, on-call specialists.
Precision Spine to introduce MD-Vue Lateral Access System
Parsippany, N.J.-based Precision Spine plans to increase its MD-Vue Lateral Access System at the North American Spine Society Annual Meeting in October in Boston. The MD-Vue System includes a patented nested three-blade design that inhibits blade creep during insertion in lateral procedures.
Health benefit costs to jump 6% in 2017
Healthcare costs will likely increase next year, with rate hikes similar to those for 2016, according to a National Business Group on Health report. There is a 6 percent increase in health benefit cost to employers for 2017, the same as the past two years. But many employers are changing their plans so the costs will only increase 5 percent. Most employers — 90 percent — will make telehealth services available in states where that's allowable next year, a jump from 70 percent in 2016.
Dr. Frank Vrionis to head Boca Raton Regional's Marcus Neuroscience Institute
Boca Raton (Fla.) Regional Hospital named neurosurgeon Frank K. Vrionis, MD, PhD, the director of the Marcus Neuroscience Institute. In his new role, he hopes to further research the causes of neurological diseases as well as develop new treatments. The $57 million Marcus Neuroscience Institute opened in 2014.