MedAxiom, the premier source for cardiovascular organizational performance solutions, has released its ninth annual Cardiovascular Provider Compensation and Production Survey Report revealing the true impact of the coronavirus pandemic on cardiovascular programs in 2020. While cardiology production was significantly down, cardiology compensation fared well in 2020. In fact, private group cardiologist compensation rose. Separately, a new patient panel measure shows a downward trend for median physician FTE per 1,000 active patients suggesting that the cardiology community is moving more care to APPs as part of its clinical strategy.

Novocardia, a value-based cardiovascular care delivery platform, announced Monday a $53.7 million Series A financing led by Deerfield Management Company. Novocardia is partnering with cardiologists to help them to grow their practices and navigate an increasingly complex healthcare landscape through participation in fee-for-value (FFV) reimbursement models. The company’s mission is to deliver better care at lower cost, through more proactive and prevention-focused care, leveraging technology, and creating aligned partnerships with health plans and referral partners.

The U.S. saw remarkable increases in the death rates for heart disease, diabetes and some other common killers in 2020, and experts believe a big reason may be that many people with dangerous symptoms made the lethal mistake of staying away from the hospital for fear of catching the coronavirus. The death rates — posted online this week by federal health authorities — add to the growing body of evidence that the number of lives lost directly or indirectly to the coronavirus in the U.S. is far greater than the officially reported COVID-19 death toll of nearly 600,000 in 2020-21.