Editor's Note The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advises consumers to avoid topical analgesics marketed in violation of federal law by six different companies, including: TKTX Company: TKTX Numb Maximum Strength Pain Reliever, Mithra+ 10% Lidocaine, TKTX During Procedure Numbing Gel 40% and J-CAIN cream [LIDOCAINE] 29.9% SeeNext Venture,…

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Editor's Note The Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) proposed a new rule that would require hospitals and health systems to report any cyberattacks or ransomware attacks to the agency within 72 hours and any ransomware payments within 24 hours.  The healthcare sector is one of…

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Editor's Note Surglogs, a leading regulatory and accreditation platform in the healthcare industry, is partnering with the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) in a "strategic collaboration," a March 13 press release reports. This collaboration marks a significant advancement in the accessibility of AAAHC accreditation standards, as they will…

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What if a surgeon decided to perform a procedure on a patient that was not totally necessary? It happens more often that one might realize. As recently as August 2023, Forbes published an article that cited a Harvard Business Review report stating that over 50% of lumbar spine surgeries are…

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Editor's Note The healthcare spending burden of Medicare households was double that of non-Medicare households in 2022, according to an analysis published by KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation) on March 14.  Using data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, KFF found that average health-related expenses made up 13.6% of Medicare households’ total…

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Editor's Note New standards from The Environmental Protection Agency promise to cut nationwide emissions of ethylene oxide—employed to sterilize more than half of US medical devices—by more than 90 percent. According to a March 15 MedPage Today report, the aim is to reduce cancer risk among the 13 to 14…

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Editor's Note A study from the Joint Commission found that more than 25 percent of hospitals have not adopted any of the four policies identified by the organization as best-practice, evidence-based discharge practices for preventing suicide in at-risk patients.   According to a March 12 report on the implementation gap…

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Editor's Note Making good on plans announced by the Biden administration in December, federal agencies have launched a public inquiry into how private equity mergers and acquisitions impact patient outcomes, worker safety, and healthcare access and costs, including costs to taxpayers.  As reported by Dotmed Healthcare Business News on March…

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Editor's Note A new Alabama law provides civil and criminal immunity for providers and patients of in vitro fertilization (IVF) services, the Associated Press reported March 7. Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court effectively ruled that frozen embryos are people with a constitutional right to life, casting doubt on the…

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Editor's Note BlackCat, the ransomware group responsible for the cyberattack on UnitedHealth Group’s Change Healthcare received a $22 million payment in bitcoins, according to a post the group made online. Reutors reported the news March 4. Change Healthcare provides payment and revenue cycle management tools and is owned by UnitedHealth, the…

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