UPMC is hiring at its newly built surgery center in Monroeville, Pa.

Anesthesia Business Consultants advised anesthesiologists to issue an advanced beneficiary notice of noncoverage to patients if there is "serious doubt" about whether the insurance provider will cover the requested service.

CMS' proposed 2021 fee schedule could spell trouble for anesthesia, according to a report from Anesthesia Business Consultants.

Shutdown-related gaps in care could exacerbate the opioid epidemic, according to the Illinois Pain Institute, an independent pain practice with seven locations in the Chicagoland area.

Alpharetta, Ga.-based Premier Anesthesia appointed Preston Smith as president.

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey's March 23 executive order, which allows nurse anesthetists to perform anesthesia procedures without physician supervision, is being met with opposition, according to local NBC affiliate KVOA.

Irving, Texas-based NorthStar Anesthesia signed on to provide services for Southfield, Mich.-based Beaumont Health's facilities in Dearborn, Taylor, Trenton and Wayne, Crain's Detroit Business reports.

Dallas-based U.S. Anesthesia Partners signed a long-term agreement with Molina Healthcare of Texas.

Seven anesthesia groups have signed a contract to provide services or went through a merger or acquisition in 2020 so far:

An anesthesiologist was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to involvement in a $200 million fraud scheme at Dallas-based Forest Park Medical Center, a now-defunct physician-owned hospital for bariatric and spinal patients, according to the Department of Justice.

The Tennessee Society of Anesthesiologists joined calls for a statewide mask mandate to slow COVID-19 transmission, according to News Channel 5 Tennessee.

Spindletop Pain Management Holdings and Tricity Pain Associates acquired San Antonio-based Hill Country Pain Associates.

Rising numbers of COVID-19 patients in U.S. hot spots could strain availability of critical care physicians and nurses, giving non-hospital providers "an instrumental role in the pandemic response," according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report.

Five big stories involving anesthesiologists around the country the week of July 24-31:

A COVID-19 outbreak hit Gainesville-based University of Florida Health's anesthesia department earlier this month, WUFT News reported based on hospital documents and conversations with inside sources.

Christopher Arndt, MD, was appointed the interim chair of the anesthesiology and critical care medicine departments at Albuquerque-based University of New Mexico after Hugh Martin, MD, stepped away from the position, effective Sept. 7.

New Castle, Del.-based Anesthesia Services received a Paycheck Protection Program loan of at least $2 million, according to the Delaware Business Times.

The COVID-19 pandemic will affect daily operating room management by ASCs, according to a narrative review published in the Journal of Clinical Anesthesia.

Anesthesiologists and certified registered nurse anesthetists were among the most-requested specialists from 2019-20, according to Merritt Hawkins' "2020 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives and the Impact of COVID-19."

Anesthesiologists earn $398,000 a year, on average, according to Medscape's "Anesthesiologist Compensation Report 2020."