Health care economist Wayne Winegarden, Ph.D., makes the case that fixing Medicare payment, not restricting MSOs, is the way to keep independent practices open.

Source: Medical Economics

An AI hacking incident underlines why DPMs should perform their due diligence when incorporating AI into their practice.

Source: MIT Technology Review

In June, Dr. Grace Hodges-Torres, DPM, MBA, published Doctor Do, Doctor Don’t, a book that helps physicians navigate the bureaucracy, consolidation, and productivity metrics that dominate today’s healthcare system and offers a candid roadmap to building a career in medicine.

Have a question for your colleagues? An insight or opinion about a pressing issue that you want to share? Email us to get the conversations started.

As part of our revised and revitalized outreach efforts, Podiatry Management is now on Facebook and LinkedIn, with more platforms coming soon. Follow our accounts to get (or provide) updates about the podiatry sector, learn more about your colleagues’ work, and engage with the DPM community.

The collection letter that warns a patient about their credit is often making a claim that is no longer true. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule in January 2025 banning medical debt from credit reports, and a federal court in the Eastern District of Texas vacated it that July, so there is no federal ban. The voluntary policies the three major credit bureaus adopted in 2023 are still standing, as the National Consumer Law Center tracks, and they do most of the work: paid medical collections come off entirely, unpaid balances under $500 are excluded and nothing reports for a full year.

For a typical practice, that covers the overwhelming majority of patient balances. Roughly 15 states go further and bar medical debt from credit reports outright, though whether federal law preempts them is being litigated. Pull your dunning letters and read what they actually say. Language that implies a $180 balance will damage someone's credit is inaccurate, and inaccurate collection language is its own problem.

Source: Keith A. Reynolds, Physicians Practice

New Jersey podiatrist Ana Maira Pimentel, DPM, was part of “a distinguished group of fellow trailblazers and barrier-breakers” who recently described their professional journeys to a gathering of New Brunswick middle school students.

Source: Tap Into New Brunswick

Patients cannot follow a policy they have never heard. Write a plain-language no-show and late-cancellation policy, then communicate it at the point of booking and again at check-in, so it is a shared expectation rather than a surprise after the fact.

Back it with consistent records. Missed appointments carry a real liability risk, and it helps to document every missed appointment in the chart, along with how and when you followed up. Clear documentation protects the practice, gives you the history you need before you act on a repeat offender, and turns a vague frustration into something you can actually manage.

Source: Keith A. Reynolds, Physicians Practice

Leadership from HHS and CMS recently gathered to discuss progress made since the Health Technology Ecosystem launch last year, including health data interoperability advancements, modern health information exchange standards, and expanded patient access to digital health applications. Watch a recording of the event here and see whether these changes have affected your operations.

The Trump administration is ending a key health insurance subsidy program that aimed to keep premiums for seniors' prescription drug plans in check, claiming that it benefits corporate insurance companies.

Source: ABC News

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