Becker's Spine Review

6 SPINE The state with the most top-ranked neurosurgery hospitals By Carly Behm N ew York has the most top-ranked neurology and neurosurgery hospitals for 2023 and 2024, according to new data from U.S. News and World Report. The state has nine top-ranked neurology and neurosurgery hospitals, closely followed by California, which has eight. New York's nine top-ranked neurology and neurosurgery hospitals and their national rankings: 1. NYU Langone hospitals (New York City) 3. NewYork-Presbyterian Columbia University Irving Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical Center (New York City) 9. Mount Sinai Hospital (New York City) 15. Long Island Jewish Medical Center at Northwell Health (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) 19. North Shore University Hospital at Northwell Health (Manhasset, N.Y.) 28. Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West hospitals (New York City) 32. NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital (New York City) 40. Lenox Hill Hospital at Northwell Health (New York City) 44. St. Francis Hospital and Heart Center (Roslyn, N.Y.) n Spine surgeon gets 33 months for accepting $315K+ in kickbacks By Carly Behm D avid Payne, MD, was sentenced to 33 months in prison after he was found guilty of accepting bribes for performing surgeries at the now-defunct Pacific Hospital in Long Beach, Calif. Along with his sentence, Dr. Payne will have to pay $20,000 in fines and forfeit $316,597. according to the U.S. attorney's office for the Central District of California said July 14. Dr. Payne was convicted of one count of conspiracy, two counts of wire fraud and one count of use of an interstate facility in aid of bribery in March. He received kickbacks from Michael Drobot, who owned Pacific Hospital, in exchange for spine surgery referrals. Dr. Payne received up to $15,000 for each spine surgery he did at the hospital and earned more than $315,000 from the scheme. n Unnecessary spine, orthopedic surgeries on the rise By Claire Wallace T he number of unnecessary surgeries performed in the field of spine and orthopedic care is on the rise, with an estimated 50 percent of lumbar spine surgeries deemed unnecessary, according to an Aug. 2 report from Forbes based on a Harvard Business Review study. In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 30,000 unnecessary spine surgeries were performed, even at top hospitals, according to a report from the Lown Institute. During the pandemic, elective surgeries were put on pause, with a decrease in hip and knee replacements affecting already struggling health systems, the report, written by surgeon Greg Licholai, MD, said. When systems reopened their doors, they witnessed a surge in replacements that were put on hold during the pandemic. CMS projects a 176 percent increase in hip replacements and a 139 percent increase in knee replacements by 2040. An estimated 34 percent of knee replacement surgeries are currently deemed unnecessary. Additionally, an estimated 30 percent of patients are dissatisfied with their knee replacement procedure post- operation, according to a study published in the National Library of Medicine. Experts said the risks and costs of elective joint surgery can be high for patients, who are oen unaware of the pitfalls. "Very few people actually need surgery for back pain or knee pain," Ryan Grant, MD, a neurosurgeon and co-founder and CEO of Vori Health, a nationwide medical practice that specializes in nonoperative care for back, neck and joint pain, told Forbes. "Yet, here we are, forced into a corner by a manufactured perception that elective orthopedic surgeries are necessities." n

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