Integration & Physician Issues

The American Academy of Family Physicians cautions against substituting nurse practitioners for physicians as a stop-gap answer to the primary care physician shortage.

Minneapolis-based Allina Health and Eagan, Minn.-based Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota have announced a new health coverage option for large employers.

Montefiore Medical Center in New York City has signed an agreement to form an ACO with Empire BlueCross BlueShield.

United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia, N.Y., has announced it will become a teaching hospital in 2013 in order to address the looming physician shortage, according to a report by The Daily News.

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has acquired Infectious Disease Associates in Bloomfield, Pa., luring it away from West Penn Allegheny Health System, with which it had previously been associated, according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette report.

The following affiliations or developments between hospitals, health systems and physician groups took place within the past month, beginning with the most recent.

An investigation by the Center for Public Integrity found medical billing abuse and upcoding may be on the rise since medical professionals have billed an additional $11 billion over the last decade, according to The Washington Post.

As hospitals in Florida, and around the country, take over more physician practices, patients and healthcare payors may see an increase in fees, according to an Orlando Sentinel report.

Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington, Vt., and the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center of Lebanon, N.H., have sought federal approval to jointly manage Medicare patients in Vermont through the development of an accountable care organization, according to a report by Vermont…

Putnam Community Medical Center in Palatka, Fla., has partnered with Optimal Radiology to implement a radiology solution that includes on-site physician coverage.