News in brief - April 18, 2011

Cosmetic surgeries increase

The number of people getting plastic surgery in 2010 grew, although the count of minimally invasive cosmetic procedures declined, according to an annual report issued April 4 by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

Plastic surgery grew from 1.5 million procedures in 2009 to 1.6 million in 2010. Breast augmentation was the most common, with 318,123 recorded. Liposuction was second, with 289,016 surgeries. Eyelid surgery was third with 152,123.

"These numbers mirror what we have been hearing across the country this past year," said Felmont Eaves, MD, president of the society. "Patients who put off surgery because of uncertainty in the economy and the job market are coming back for tried-and-true procedures. Growth in demand will likely continue as the recession eases, and baby boomers and their offspring begin to explore surgical and nonsurgical options."

Nonsurgical procedures went down from 8.5 million in 2009 to 7.7 million in 2010. Botulinum toxin type A was most common, with 2.4 million injections. Hyaluronic acid was second with 1.3 million procedures, and laser hair removal was third with 0.9 million.

A full copy of the Cosmetic Surgery National Databank Statistics report is available online (www.surgery.org/sites/default/files/Stats2010_1.pdf).

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Survey: Few patients know about PHRs

A recent survey by IDC Health Insights may help explain why so few people use personal health record systems. They've never heard of them.

IDC surveyed 1,200 consumers in February and asked them about their PHR use. They found that only 7% of consumers used them, and 51% had never been exposed to the idea of using a PHR. The report said barriers to PHR adoption include a lack of pre-populated data; concerns about portability if they change physicians, employers or health plans; privacy concerns; and physicians not recommending the use of PHRs.

The report's authors say patient-centered medical homes and accountable-care models should encourage physicians to recommend PHR use to their patients to better manage their health.

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Reversal of court decision will cost Health Net $180 million

The Supreme Court of Louisiana has unanimously reversed a decision and Health Net will have to pay $180 million.

The April 1 ruling said Health Net was liable in part for losses incurred by three HMOs that it sold in 1999 to a newly created company called AmCareco. When the HMOs failed, state regulators sued based on documents suggesting that Health Net conducted irregular accounting schemes to pull millions of dollars in cash out of the HMOs during the sale, leaving them with no way to pay claims. The HMOs operated in Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas.

The Louisiana Court of Appeal overturned the original verdict against Health Net, but the Supreme Court found that the lower court had misunderstood the facts of the case, which the ruling said constituted a "sophisticated deception." The money will be paid to consumers, creditors, physicians and others with claims against the company.

Health Net's filing said the company could pay the judgment from available cash reserves but that the year's earnings would be reduced by about $1.40 per share.

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