Seeking to clarify its original MLN Matters guidance on total knee arthroplasty (TKA) issued earlier this month, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released an updated memo on the subject on Thursday.

The latest version contains misdirection and ambiguity, the likes of which was first reported by RACmonitor, prompting CMS to rescind its initial memo. Reporting our lead story during the next edition of Monitor Mondays will be R. Phillip Baker, MD, medical director of case management at Self Regional Healthcare.

The broadcast rundown also will include:

• Monday Focus Report: Blockchain: Distributed ledger systems (DLS), also known as blockchain, will be the Monday Focus when RACmonitor investigative reporter and New York attorney Edward Roche will report on new healthcare technologies we can expect to see in 2019.
  
  
• War on Drugs: The U.S. Department of Justice announced this week that Walgreens Boots Alliance agreed to pay $269.2 million to settle two healthcare fraud lawsuits alleging that Walgreens overbilled the government. In a related matter, United HealthCare Services filed a federal lawsuit last week against more than 40 drug companies, alleging they violated federal and state antitrust laws. Whistleblower attorney Mary Inman will report on both lawsuits.
  
  
• Risky Business: Healthcare attorney David Glaser will return to Monitor Mondays with his popular segment “Risky Business,” in which he reports on problematic issues facing providers.
  
  
• Hot Topics: Monitor Mondays senior correspondent Nancy Beckley, president and CEO of Nancy Beckley and Associates, will return to report on all the latest hot topics.
  
  
• Monday Rounds: Ronald Hirsch, MD, vice president of R1 Physician Advisory Services, will be making his Monday Rounds with another installment of his popular segment.