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Site neutral payments: Are there winners and losers?
The mantra ‘location, location, location’ in property purchases was supposedly emphasized by Lord Harold Samuel, a British real estate tycoon. Location is also important when Medicare pays for some health care services. Depending on whether services are provided in Hospital…
Study strengthens case for conservative therapy in claudication over early intervention
Early peripheral vascular intervention (PVI) for claudication is associated with higher rates of progression to chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) and major adverse limb events (MALE) compared with conservative medical management, according to data presented at the 2026 annual winter meeting of the…
Introducing the vascular surgery MIPS Value Pathway: A new era for meaningful, specialty-driven quality reporting
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently finalized a new Merit-based Incentive Payment (MIPS) System Value Pathway (MVP) specifically for vascular surgery — an important milestone for our specialty and the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS). Developed by…
Phaedro’s dog and Dr. Oz: Reclaiming physician leadership in health care
The novel I, Claudius, is a historical fiction written by Robert Graves in 1934. Daily life amidst Rome’s political decay during the despotic regimes of Augustus, Tiberius and Caligula is richly described. Claudius’ grandmother was the sinister Livia who manipulated…
Progress with limits: Female surgeons still face uneven playing field
For decades, vascular surgery had few female surgeons. The specialty carved out its territory with increasingly sophisticated techniques, but the operating rooms where surgeons performed carotid endarterectomies and aortic repairs remained overwhelmingly male. Only in recent years have women started…
SVS Foundation Awards Grant to Study Pregnancy Outcomes, PAD Risk
The Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Foundation has awarded its Vascular Care for the Underserved (VC4U) Project Grant to a study examining the link between reproductive history and peripheral artery disease (PAD). The project, titled “Linking Reproductive History to Vascular Health:…
Dementia patients see worse outcomes after AAA repair
A cohort study using national Medicare data found patients with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias face significantly higher risks across different outcomes after elective abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. The data were presented at the 2026 annual meeting of the…
Fear and loathing in a post-CREST-2 world
Medical editor Malachi Sheahan III, MD, reflects on the release of the CREST-2 results and considers what they may mean for clinical practice. As you likely know, the long-awaited CREST-2 trial results were recently released. While panic and jubilation erupt…
Thomas Fogarty, cardiovascular surgeon and medical technology pioneer, dies
Thomas J. Fogarty, MD, a dedicated surgeon and trailblazing innovator who revolutionized medical technology when he created the first ever minimally invasive surgical device, died peacefully on Dec. 28, 2025. He was 91. Born on Feb. 25, 1934, in Cincinnati,…
Robyn Macsata lectureship to debut at 2026 APDVS annual meeting
The Association of Program Directors in Vascular Surgery (APDVS), in collaboration with the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Women’s Section and the SVS Foundation, will launch the inaugural Robyn Macsata Lectureship at the APDVS Annual Meeting, March 6–7, 2026, in…