On Wednesday, Arizona reported 490 new cases of COVID-19 and 10 new deaths. 8% of the state's intensive care unit beds are currently in use by COVID-19 patients and 15% of ICU beds are available. 48.9% of Arizonans have been vaccinated and 13,238 new doses of vaccine were administered on Wednesday.
This information comes from the...
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are environmental, social, and economic conditions that affect health outcomes; SDOH data interoperability is key in the pursuit of health equity.
According to a post from ONC’s Health IT Buzz blog, authors Jawanna Henry and Samantha Meklir explained,
Addressing inequities in these conditions,...
Physicians, residents and medical students at the Special Meeting of the AMA House of Delegates adopted new policies that aim to target peer-to-peer review of prior authorization decisions and the specific burden of prior authorization during a public health emergency.
This came after years of advocacy to streamline burdensome prior...
Arizona came in tenth place in a national study by The Senior List for best states for nursing professionals in 2021; Arizona is expected to see up to 50% growth in nursing professions over the next decade.
The study compared salary, wage, employment and housing data for each state to determine which ones are most favorable for...
There were only two new COVID-19 related deaths reported in Arizona on Wednesday, and 469 new cases. The total number of Arizona deaths attributed to COVID-19 is 17,430 and there are 870,624 cases now reported in Arizona with 11% of intensive care unit beds in use by COVID-19 patients, 14% of ICU beds are available.
This information...Health Related Groups
Last year, in the wake of George Floyd’s killing, the AMA called for an end to police brutality and for uniform training, transparency in reporting, and accountability for law enforcement. The AMA House of Delegates also recognized the detrimental public health consequences of violent law enforcement interactions and adopted policy...CMS Rules
Provider groups aren't too worried about the 2% Medicare payment cut that is scheduled to go back into effect on April 1st after being paused for the COVID-19 pandemic. The cuts originally went into effect in 2013 and were paused to protect providers like hospitals and doctor groups that are now confident that the cuts will continue to...National Reports & Surveys
The payment gap between independent and hospital-employed doctors is significant. The average gaps were $63,000 for primary care doctors, $178,000 for medical specialists and $150,000 for surgeons.
Based on Medicare claims data from 2010-2016, research found that the program's payments for doctors' work were $114,000 higher per...Arizona News
As of February 24, the number of COVID-19 cases in Arizona has reached 811, 968 with 1,310 new cases being reported today. There were 43 new deaths reported today, bringing the state total to 15,693. The deaths reported today will be reassigned to the date the deaths occurred.
The total percent positive rests at 14.2%. Intensive Care...News
On Wednesday, January 20, Arizona reported 4,845 new cases, bringing the state total to 690,544. There were 262 new deaths reported Wednesday with total deaths from the pandemic at 11,528. Deaths reported Wednesday will be retroactively assigned to the date of death.
The Hertel Report is offering this coverage as a free resource...CMS Rules
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a new rule to streamline prior authorizations and improve electronic healthcare data transfers between doctors, patients and insurance companies. The rule will require payers involved in certain government programs to build apps for the purpose of this exchange and prior...CMS Rules
On Tuesday the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final rule for policy adjustments under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) for calendar year 2021. The rule confirmed changes to telehealth payments made during the COVID-19 pandemic, but will make cuts to specialty providers.
Last March, during the onset...National News
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services alternative payment models have found immediate difficulty navigating the COVID-19 pandemic with limited resources and occasionally difficult reporting requirements, but the issues between participants in these payment models and the structures of them actually go much further back than the...National News
Hospitals and providers are unsure when the loans will be collected, and HHS is only now putting forth guidance on reporting for CARES Act funding recipients. This disruption and subsequent uncertainty has led to struggling hospitals not even applying for critical assistance from HHS.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the...Arizona News
On Tuesday, the American Medical Association's Chief Experience Officer Todd Unger spoke with AMA Chief Health and Science Officer Mira Irons, MD, on the weekly look at the numbers and trends, including a record-breaking weekend in Arizona and new cases and deaths across the country.
The duo discussed a variety of real-time data...Arizona News
An Arizona-based organization of doctors sued the Department of Health and Human Services regarding the federally imposed limitations on prescribing hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine to patients as a COVID-19 preventative. In April, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey also set similar restrictions until the drug is shown by medical study to be an...Arizona News
A state appeals court has ruled to resurrect a physician-assisted suicide law in California, giving terminally ill patients the right to an option.
Nationwide, doctor-assisted suicide has proved controversial, seeing extremists from both ends of the spectrum similar in issues like abortion laws. The rule applies to adults with...
