Adam Bruggeman, MD, serves as the chief executive officer and a surgeon at San Antonio-based Texas Spine Care Center.
Dr. Bruggeman will serve on the panels “Prior Authorizations, Denials and More: Big Payer Trends in Spine and Orthopedics” and “Amazon, Walmart, Apple in Healthcare: What Surgeons Need to Know” at Becker’s 19th Annual Spine, Orthopedic & Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference. As part of an ongoing series, Becker’s is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place in Chicago from June 16-18.
To learn more and register, click here.
Question: What issues are you spending most of your time on today?
Dr. Adam Bruggeman: Prior Authorization is a drain on physician offices and their patients with limited utility. In Texas, we have shown how burdensome the process is and how few cases are ultimately denied. The costs are extensive. We are also just beginning the work on a long-term fix to physician compensation. There is a strong irony that the AHA claimed that 4 percent increases in compensation could not keep up with the actual cost of delivering care. Yet, physicians were begging not to have a 9 percent reduction in their compensation. Insurance companies are showing increasing profits year-over-year as for-profit, publicly traded companies, yet they are strangling the delivery of healthcare to the point of potential no return. We must develop long-term solutions to stabilize the industry…
