Five senators are calling for an investigation [1] into a system that gives surgeons a financial stake in the devices they use on their patients. The inquiry comes after a Wall Street Journal investigation [2] of Dr. Vishal James Makker, a surgeon with a questionable track record for performing multiple spinal operations on his patients.
An analysis of Medicare data [3] revealed that, among physicians who regularly performed these kinds of operations for Medicare patients, Makker had the highest rate of repeat surgeries in the nation -- nearly 10 times the national average. Makker operated on patients up to 7 times; many patients complained of additional health problems as a result of the extra surgeries. (These findings came from a Medicare claims database that is still not available to the public, though two senators are pushing to change that -- more on that here [4]).
Monday, June 13, 2011
More Scrutiny for Doctors Profiting From Medical Devices They Use - ProPublica
via propublica.org
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