Business

End of an Era: COVID-19 Public Health Emergency is Ending

Mar 13, 2023 at 08:01 pm by kbarrettalley

By: Kelli Carpenter Fleming The Biden Administration recently announced its intent to end the national emergency and public health emergency declarations on May 11, 2023, ove.... Read More

Fake Nursing Licenses on the Rise

Mar 13, 2023 at 08:00 pm by kbarrettalley

The scope of this fraud scheme is astonishing By LYNNE JETER If you employ nurses with nursing degrees from Siena College, Palm Beach School of Nursing, or Sacred He.... Read More

Alabama Hospitals Facing Financial Collapse

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:51 pm by kbarrettalley

From the Alabama Hospital Association: Hospital margins in Alabama have dropped 79 percent since the start of the pandemic, despite receiving financial assistance directly fr.... Read More

Value Based Care Model is Reinventing Primary Care

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:25 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jane Ehrhardt By 2030, CMS aims to change most Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries to a value-based care (VBC) program. That means Medicare will reimburse provi.... Read More

Your Practice and Telemedicine

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:24 pm by kbarrettalley

By Catherine (Cat) Kirkland The COVID-19 pandemic gave way to a rapid increase in virtual care for patients. Now nearly three years on, the American Medical Associati.... Read More

Feature Profiles

Birmingham Hospitalist in Iraq

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:25 pm by kbarrettalley

by Laura Freeman The 20-year mark is when most military personnel think of retiring to civilian life. After 21 years in the Air Force, Ronald Roan, MD returned to the Army wi.... Read More

Regulatory/Compliance

The Legislature Could Save Alabama Hospitals with Medicaid Expansion

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:55 pm by kbarrettalley

By Steve Spencer In 2014, the Affordable Care Act offered to fund states’ Medicaid expansion with the federal government paying 100 percent of the costs for the first t.... Read More

The No Surprises Act is Full of Surprises

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:24 pm by kbarrettalley

Legislation had problems from the get-go By LYNNE JETER The No Surprises Act (NSA), which went into effect January 1, 2022, to protect patients from an estim.... Read More

FTC Proposes an End to Employee Non-Compete Agreements

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:23 pm by kbarrettalley

By Beth Vessel In a dramatic departure from long-standing practice, the Federal Trade Commission hopes to put an end to the use of non-compete agreements by employers.... Read More

The Inflation Reduction Act provides a dose of holiday cheer for providers

Jan 14, 2023 at 01:18 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jesse Neil and Ellie Martin It’s natural, this time of year, to reflect on the past twelve months and cast a wary eye toward the year ahead. For healthcare p.... Read More

Research

Samford Student’s Research Published in The Journal of the Alabama Academy of Science

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:57 pm by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman Experience can be a strong source of inspiration. Many who go into healing professions can trace their interest back to a time when they or someone n.... Read More

Why Isn’t Lumbar Disk Replacement Covered in Alabama?

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:56 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jane Ehrhardt Currently, although BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama covers cervical disk replacement, the insurer does not reimburse for a lumbar total disk replacement (TDR.... Read More

UAB Precision Medicine Identifies Possible Treatment for Rare ADNP Autism Disorder

Jan 14, 2023 at 01:18 pm by kbarrettalley

By Marti Webb Slay When the Hugh Kaul Precision Medicine Institute at UAB was founded five years ago, the goal was to contribute to the effort of tailoring treatments.... Read More

Interview with Brenda Orffer, CAE, the CEO American Neurological Association

Dec 19, 2022 at 09:24 am by kbarrettalley

By LYNNE JETER From preparing the next generation of scientists, to sharing how primary care doctors can improve care for neurological disorders, to addressing dispar.... Read More

Clinical

Get Ready for Medical Marijuana

Mar 13, 2023 at 08:01 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jane Ehrhardt Medical marijuana could become a part of Alabama physicians’ options for alleviating pain and making numerous conditions more endurable as soon.... Read More

Improving the Odds Against Lung Cancer

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:53 pm by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman It’s the most lethal cancer in the United States. However, advances in screening, diagnostics and new therapies are at last improving the prognosis f.... Read More

David Sibley, MD Began His Career with a Diagnostic Breakthrough

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:25 pm by kbarrettalley

By Marti Webb Slay Significant medical developments are the result of creative thinking, attention to scientific data and good teamwork. Sometimes, they are also the.... Read More

Pankaj Arora, MD confers with a patient.

UAB Cardiogenomics Clinic Helps Patients with Inherited Heart Disease

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:25 pm by kbarrettalley

By Steve Spencer Back in the early 2000s when Pankaj Arora, MD was training in population genomics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Broad Institut.... Read More

Options for Coronary Chronic Total Occlusion

Feb 21, 2023 at 12:24 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jane Ehrhardt “There are patients with angina who are told they have a 100-percent blockage in a coronary artery and that nothing can be done about it. But,.... Read More

Research

Samford Student’s Research Published in The Journal of the Alabama Academy of Science

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:57 pm by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman Experience can be a strong source of inspiration. Many who go into healing professions can trace their interest back to a time when they or someone n.... Read More

Why Isn’t Lumbar Disk Replacement Covered in Alabama?

Mar 13, 2023 at 07:56 pm by kbarrettalley

By Jane Ehrhardt Currently, although BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama covers cervical disk replacement, the insurer does not reimburse for a lumbar total disk replacement (TDR.... Read More

UAB Precision Medicine Identifies Possible Treatment for Rare ADNP Autism Disorder

Jan 14, 2023 at 01:18 pm by kbarrettalley

By Marti Webb Slay When the Hugh Kaul Precision Medicine Institute at UAB was founded five years ago, the goal was to contribute to the effort of tailoring treatments.... Read More

Interview with Brenda Orffer, CAE, the CEO American Neurological Association

Dec 19, 2022 at 09:24 am by kbarrettalley

By LYNNE JETER From preparing the next generation of scientists, to sharing how primary care doctors can improve care for neurological disorders, to addressing dispar.... Read More

Why Do Men Have a Lower Life Expectancy?

Dec 19, 2022 at 09:24 am by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman Not that many generations ago, it was traditional for Scottish brides to begin weaving and sewing their burial shrouds the day after the wedding. Dea.... Read More

UCA Offers New Treatment for ED

Dec 19, 2022 at 09:24 am by kbarrettalley

Duolith Shockwave Therapy By Laura Freeman The impact of erectile dysfunction is far more than physical. It can create anxiety and undermine a man’s se.... Read More

Breast Cancer Screening Update

Nov 18, 2022 at 02:28 pm by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman Advances in breast cancer screening and treatment have made a tremendous difference in outcomes. Between1989 and 2020, death rates have gone down 43.... Read More

OrthoGrid Navigation System Offers a Clearer Picture of Hip Surgeries

Oct 16, 2022 at 12:12 pm by kbarrettalley

By Laura Freeman Michael K. Ryan, MD of Andrews Sports Medicine is a rare orthopedic surgeon. In addition to the anterior approach hip replacements he performs at As.... Read More

An Alternative for Sleep Apnea Sufferers Who Can’t Use CPAP

Oct 16, 2022 at 12:09 pm by kbarrettalley

By Steve Spencer The American Medical Association estimates that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects up to 30 million people. The condition, in which a person&rsquo.... Read More

Former College Football Player Returns to the Field to Help Younger Generations of Athletes

Sep 14, 2022 at 07:16 am by steve

Michael Patterson, MD has always had a passion for sports. He played four sports in high school but fell in love with football. After being off the field for years now, Patt.... Read More

Brain Health Program Can Help Prevent Dementia

Aug 15, 2022 at 08:51 am by steve

An estimated one in five Americans 65 years or older has mild cognitive impairment, and one in seven has dementia. By 2050, the number of Americans with dementia is expected.... Read More

The Murky Waters of Long COVID

May 13, 2022 at 01:00 pm by steve

The suicide last May of Long COVID sufferer Heidi Ferrer rocked the COVID-19 world, lending a face to the debated diagnosis. A TV writer for Dawson's Creek and Wasteland, Fe.... Read More