Becker's ASC Review

25 GASTROENTEROLOGY What's next for GI tech? By Paige Haeffele R obotics, artificial intelligence and other technologies have made waves in the gastroenterology sector. ese innovations have made minimally invasive procedures more accessible, treatment and detection more successful and increase efficiency in procedures. So what is next when it comes to GI technology? Here are five of the latest innovations with the potential to radically change GI care, treatment and more: 1. Artificial intelligence. In a randomized trial published in the journal Gastroenterology, three Italian research centers found that computer-aided polyp detection increases adenoma detection rates over high-definition colonoscopy alone. "I've been doing this for a long time and [gastroenterology] has changed dramatically in the last 10 years," Sheldon Taub, MD, a gastroenterologist at Jupiter (Fla.) Medical Center, told Becker's. "I anticipate further change in the next 10 years, or certainly a lot more. Artificial intelligence — I'm not smart enough to know where it's going to play out, but it's certainly going to have a role in the decision- making. It will have a role with radiology, with pathology and certainly with endoscopy." 2. Peroral endoscopic myotomy. POEM procedures are considered minimally invasive and used to treat esophageal motility disorders, particularly achalasia, according to a news release from practice management organization United Digestive. It has comparable results Colonoscopies cost 55% more at hospitals compared to ASCs: Study By Riz Hatton U .S. hospitals' facility fees for colonoscopy procedures covered by private health insurance are on average about 55% higher than facility fees billed by ASCs, according to a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. e study was published in JAMA Health Forum on Dec. 15. Researchers examined Transparency in Coverage data for 13,287 colonoscopy facility fees charged by 3,582 hospitals and 17,052 ASCs in 50 states and Washington, D.C., as of May 2023, according to a Dec. 15 news release from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Insurer data came from Cigna, Anthem, Healthcare Service Corp. and UnitedHealthcare. As of June 2022, insurers must publish their in-network rates for covered items and services under a Transparency in Coverage requirement. e study found that hospitals billed an average of $1,530 in facility fees for colonoscopies, $1,760 for colonoscopies with biopsy, and $1,761 for colonoscopies with removal of polyps, compared to $989, $1,034, and $1,030 in facility fees, respectively, at ASCs. Respectively, colonoscopy facility fees were 54%, 56%, and 61% higher at hospitals than ASCs located in the same county and contracting with the same insurer, according to the study. Facility fees charged under Medicaid and Medicare were not examined in this study. n AGA reiterates concerns over UnitedHealthcare endoscopy policy By Riz Hatton T he American Gastroenterological Association issued a statement Dec. 20 objecting to UnitedHealthcare's advance notification program for gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures and its proposed gold card prior authorization program planned for 2024. UnitedHealthcare launched its advance notification policy in June; the AGA in July expressed concern regarding the changes and in August sent a letter to UHC requesting clarification on that policy as well as the gold card program. The AGA said in its most recent statement that it has "expressed strong concerns regarding the 2024 implementation of UHC's prior authorization program for GI procedures, citing a lack of transparency, inadequate justification and negative impacts on patient care." The AGA said it has urged UnitedHealthcare to reconsider its policies but said the payer has yet to respond. The AGA is calling for UHC to "provide clarity to patients and providers and ultimately reverse plans to impose a prior authorization policy for colonoscopies and endoscopies in 2024." A UnitedHealthcare spokesperson told Becker's on Dec. 20: "We haven't made any changes to our policy regarding screening colonoscopies for preventive care and we haven't announced any plans to introduce prior authorization for non-screening GI procedures in 2024." n

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