Becker's Spine Review

71 PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SPINE DEVICE & INNOVATION HEALTHCARE REFORM terfeit implants. e case involves Spinal Solutions, a now defunct California-based company. e lawsuit alleges that Dr. White implanted Spinal Solutions' "counterfeit" parts in patients in order to receive kickbacks. Aurora St. Luke's MedicalCenter and Wheaton Franciscan Health- care's St.Francis Hospital were also named in the lawsuit for not vetting Dr. White properly. Fiy insurance compa- nied filed the suit and Dr. White relinquished his medical license as part of a plea deal. is suit sparked nationwide allegations about healthcare fraud. 49. Aria Sabit, MD, a neurosurgeon formerly practicing in Michigan, pled guilty to performing unnecessary spine surgery and billing insurance companies and the govern- ment unlawfully. e U.S. Attorney's Office reported Dr. Sabit billed insurance companies and the government $11 million unlawfully. Since 2011, Dr. Sabit has pled guilty to four counts of healthcare fraud. He faces at least nine to 11 years in prison under the plea agreement. 50. Medtronic Plc agreed to pay $2.8 million to the United States Justice Department to settle false claims alleging illegal payment to physicians. Medtronic was accused of making illegal payments to physicians in exchange for recommending procedures that were not safe. e Justice Department alleges Medtronic wanted physicians to use a neurostimulation device off-label in order to create an expanding market for their devices. Medtronic denied any wrongdoing. Spine surgeons making the news 51. Albert Telfeian, MD, performed the first endoscopic extraction of a spinal tumor for a patient while the patient was awake. 52. Sanjay Khurana, MD, a spine surgeon at DISCSports & SpineCenter in Marina Del Ray, Calif., helped save actor Harrison Ford's life in March. He pulled him out of the crashed air plane. Playing a round of golf nearby, Dr. Khurana quickly responded to the plane crash by stabiliz- ing Mr. Ford and minimizing damage at the scene while waiting for emergency responders. Dr. Khurana focuses on minimally invasive and microscopic spine surgery. 53. Five spine specialists are ranked #1 on Google for their articles on spine conditions and treatments. Combined, these articles are read by more than 13 million back pain patients every year: • John Sherman, MD: Dr. Sherman has contributed his expertise in spine fusion by authoring three top- ranked articles on lumbar spine fusion surgery. ese articles are read by nearly a half-million patients every year, indicating that just about every person having a lumbar fusion in this country reads Dr. Sherman's articles. • Jeffrey Spivak, MD: Dr. Spivak earns a place on this list through his articles and videos on various surgical options, including a top-ranked article and video on multi-level spinal fusion and a number of articles on vertebral augmentation. Dr. Spivak's articles are read by a half-million patients every year. • J. Talbot Sellers, DO: Dr. Sellers is a physiatrist who has written on a variety of topics, including the top- ranked "How to get an accurate back pain diagnosis" and "All about upper back pain" articles, which are read more than 2 million times per year. • Stephen Hochschuler, MD: Dr. Hochschuler is one of the founding Medical Advisors for Spine-health.com, and has contributed a number of top-ranked articles, including an article on Sciatica that has consistently ranked #1 in both English and Spanish and gets read over 2.5 million times a year. Two animated videos have been developed to accompany the article and both have won Telly Awards. • Peter Ullrich Jr., MD: As co-founder of Spine-health. com, Dr. Ullrich has authored and reviewed a number of original articles. His top-ranked articles on micro- discectomy, ACDF and lumbar laminectomy are read by more than 1 million patients every year. New leadership positions 54. ese six physicians are moving on to new leadership roles this year: • Larry Lenke, MD, Daniel Riew, MD, and Ronald Lehman, MD, are leaving Barnes-Jewish Hospital/ Washington University School of Medicine in St. Lou- is to join New York-Presbyterian Hospital to establish a multi-disciplinary spine hospital. e three surgeons will also join the Columbia University College of Phy- sicians and Surgeons faculty. • Nick Shamie, MD, became the first surgeon at a major U.S. hospital to use Xenco Medical's disposable devic- es during a spine surgery. Designed to reduce the risk of infection, these disposable plastic instruments still retain the durability and accuracy of metal instru- ments. • Raj Rao, MD, is joining George Washington Universi- ty School of Medicine and Health Sciences, GW Hos- pital and e GW Medical Faculty Associates as the department of orthopedic surgery chair. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Rao worked as vice chairman in the department of orthopedic surgery and professor of

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