Becker's Spine Review

18 Practice Management H ere are 10 spine surgeons and neurosur- geons that recently joined new practices or were promoted to new positions. Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis appointed Munish Gupta, MD, chief of spine surgery, a position he'll assume on Sept. 1. Dr. Gupta is currently vice chair of the depart- ment of orthopedic surgery and chief of ortho- pedic spine surgery and co-director of the spine center at the University of California, Davis. Washington, D.C.-based George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sci- ences, GW Hospital and e GW Medical Fac- ulty Associates appointed Raj Rao, MD, the department of orthopedic surgery chair. He cur- rently serves as the vice chairman of the depart- ment of orthopedic surgery at Medical College of Wisconsin. e B.A.C.K. Center founder Richard Hynes, MD, and his colleagues at the practice joined First Choice Health Solutions in Florida. He will serve as medical director. Texas Children's Hospital in Houston named John Dormans, MD, the new chief of orthopedics. He previously served as chief of orthopedic surgery at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and president of the medical staff and president of Children's Surgical Associates. Mount Sinai Health System and Mount Sinai Hospital named Andrew Hecht, MD, chief of spine surgery. He will continue as director of the Mount Sinai Spine Center of Mount Sinai Doc- tors director. Spine specialist Kerry Bernardo, MD, joined Southern Bone and Joint Specialists in Hatties- burg, Miss. Canonsburg Hospital, part of Allegheny Health Network, welcomed neurosurgeon Nestor To- mycz, MD, to the medical staff. He has a special interest in deep brain stimulation, chronic pain, brain and spine trauma and epilepsy. Tampa, Fla.-based Laser Spine Institute wel- comed Reginald Davis, MD, to the physician group. Dr. Davis will serve patients at all seven Laser Spine Institute locations across the Unit- ed States. Orthopedic spine surgeon David L. Scott, MD, joined the Bonati Spine Institute's team of sur- geons. e University of Rochester Medical Center named Paul T. Rubery, MD, chief of the division of spine surgery. n 10 Spine, Neurosurgeons on the Move By Laura Dyrda Blue Cross Parent Posts $281.9M Loss in 1st Year of PPACA Exchanges By Ayla Ellison T he largest nonprofit health insurer in the country, Chicago-based Health Care Service Corp., which is the Blue Cross & Blue Shield insurer for Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Tex- as, reported a $281.9 million loss in 2014, compared with a $684.3 mil- lion surplus the year prior, according to a Crain's Chicago Business report. Last year was the first year Americans could purchase health insurance through the public exchanges, causing the number of medical claims to rise significantly, which affected HCSC's finances, according to the re- port. For instance, the health insurer, which had nearly 2 million mem- bers as of March 31, saw its prescription drug costs soar 43 percent last year. Although the health insurer posted a loss for the year, its revenue in- creased 22 percent in 2014, according to the report. HCSC expects to have a more positive financial picture in years to come. "Over time, as we have more experience on the exchanges, and that market stabilizes, we expect to see lower expenses and results that will maintain our financial strength while continuing to provide our mem- bers with cost-effective products, services and peace of mind," an HCSC spokesperson said in a statement released to Crain's. n Healthcare Spending Rises 7.2% in Q1: 5 Key Points By Kelly Gooch H ealthcare and social assistance revenue for the first quarter of 2015 was $579.3 billion, down 0.4 percent from the fourth quarter of 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Quar- terly Services Survey. And spending was up 7.2 percent from the first quarter of 2014. Here are five key points about the survey data. 1. Hospitals reported revenue of $263.4 billion in the first quarter of 2015, up 9.2 percent from the same period of 2014. 2. Within hospitals, general medical and surgical hospitals saw a 9.3 percent increase in revenue in the first quarter of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014. 3. Ambulatory healthcare services reported revenue of $219.4 billion in the first quarter of 2015, up 5.9 percent from the same period in 2014. 4. Physician office revenue grew 4.6 percent in the first quarter of 2015 compared to the first quarter of 2014, while outpatient care centers' revenue increased 8.7 percent. 5. Overall, the rise in healthcare spending is mostly attributed to greater use of health services as well as more people covered by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, according to a Wall Street Journal report. e report notes that people are starting to use more physician and outpatient services again as the economy improves. n

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