Becker's Spine Review

March 2016 l Vol. 2016 No. 2 INSIDE Neurosurgeon Salary in 2016 13 statistics on neurosurgeon pay this year. p. 9 Tracking Variation in Spine Dr. Scott Blumenthal discusses spine patient treatment trends going forward. p. 10 Physician Group M&A Up 15% Five key trends on physician group transactions. p. 30 Key Spine Industry Trends Drs. William Taylor, Christian Zimmerman, Brian Gantwerker, Andrew Casden and Samuel Cho discuss the biggest trends in the spine industry. p. 34 14 th Annual Spine, Orthopedic & Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference + The Future of Spine June 9-11, 2016 | Swissotel, Chicago Over 124 Physicians Speaking, Primarily Spine Surgeons, with 200+ Speakers Total and 117 Sessions SAVE THE DATE BECKER'S SPINE REVIEW The Best Way to Prepare for the Future in Spine INSIDE: Becker's 14th Annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference + The Future of Spine Brochure The Growth of Outpatient Spine — 9 Key Points Outpatient spine surgery has grown signifi- cantly over the past decade. Surgeons are more comfortable with the ambulatory sur- gery center setting and training in new tech- nology for minimally invasive procedures and advanced pain management. Increased quality and patient safety metrics at ASCs coupled with lower costs make outpatient surgery centers a prime location for spine surgeons looking to meet the triple aim. Bundled Payments, Consolidation & More: How OrthoVirginia is Building a Future Facing Empire Orthopedic mega practices are growing around the coun- try with groups in different regions merging to leverage power in numbers. OrthoVirginia recently acquired e Orthopaedic Center of Central Virginia, strengthening the practice to more than 100 physicians and 21 office locations. Because of its size, the practice has had success with bundled payments and developing quality standards to cut costs. Lou Holtz Tucker Carlson See the full story on page 12. See the full story on page 31. See the full story on page 36. Employed and private practice spine surgeons are collecting quality and cost data to prepare for success in the future. Data transparency is already a reality for many hospitals and provid- ers across healthcare and physicians are becoming more conscientious about their numbers. But it takes considerable resources to purchase new technology, gather data and analyze the numbers. As a result, many spine surgeons are affiliating with larger groups, whether it's hospi- tal employment, larger physician groups or alignment with other solo practitioners. "You won't have much leverage if you are a solo guy," says Hyun Bae, MD, director of spine education at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. "I think there has to be some sort of alignment between the solo physicians, especially since physicians are already at a disadvantage in payer negotiations. Payers have been collecting data for years and we're just beginning to conduct similar data collection." Dr. Bae discusses cost-effectiveness and quality metrics, and how the spine landscape is chang- ing as a result.

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