The Justice Department introduced a pilot program to reward whistleblowers who provide evidence of corporate misconduct in efforts to uncover and prosecute corporate wrongdoing.

Nari Heshmati, MD, former executive medical director for Optum Washington, has joined Fort Myers, Fla.-based Lee Health's Physician Group as chief physician executive, Dr. Heshmati shared with Becker's. 

The Medical Association of the State of Alabama and the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners is now accepting applications for a new physician training program, the Alabama Political Reporter reported Aug. 1. 

The physician workforce faces a number of converging factors –– heavy workloads, insufficient pay, staffing shortages and an increasing lack of autonomy in employed settings. Some have turned to unions and labor action as a tool in improving conditions for themselves and their patients. 

Amid the push and pull on prior authorization, reimbursements and post-procedure clawbacks, three physicians joined Becker's  to discuss what's missing in conversations with payers. 

Here are 15 physician leaders that have announced plans to retire or entered retirement in 2024, as reported by Becker's since Jan. 29:

Sound Physicians will lay off 98 employees in Tucson, Ariz., according to regulatory documents filed with the state July 30.

U.S. News & World Report has released its annual list of the most diverse medical schools in the U.S. for 2024 and 2025, with Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta earning the top ranking. 

Stark law policies could be more vulnerable to legal challenges after the Supreme Court overturned the 40-year-old legal precedent known as Chevron deference, which said during disputes over regulation of an ambiguous law, judges should defer to federal agency interpretations within reason, National Law Review reported July 23. 

Louisiana legislators have passed a bill limiting the length and geographical scope of noncompetes for specialty and primary care physicians, National Law Review reported July 27. 

Physician mortgages are loans designed for new or soon-to-be physicians who might struggle to qualify for other home loan programs due to their student loan debt, despite potential future income. Here are five things to know about physician mortgage loans, according to a July 29 report from U.S. News & World Report: 

Physician shortages and increasing costs plague healthcare systems across the country. However, rural communities tend to have disproportionately less access to adequate healthcare services.

As many as nine out of 10 physicians say that prior authorization has a negative effect on patient outcomes, according to AMA’s survey of about 1,000 physicians nationwide. This can lead to negative patient outcomes, including avoidable hospitalizations and delayed treatment.

The Department of Justice has filed a legal complaint against two medical centers for Stark law violations and submitting false Medicare claims, according to a July 26 news release. 

Washington, D.C. has the highest number of physicians per capita — seven times more than Idaho, the state with the fewest, according to an analysis by financial management website WalletHub.

Mohamed Eltemamy, MD, a urologist at Cleveland Clinic, performed the first dual kidney transplant in the U.S. using a minimally invasive robotic surgery system. 

Mississippi was ranked as the worst state for healthcare in an analysis by financial management website WalletHub.

Physician shortages are impacting medical systems nationwide. 

The athlete-to-physician pipeline is not an uncommon one, with several football players and sports stars going on to attend medical school. 

Hospitalists earned an average of $321,000 in 2023, up just $5,000 from the year prior, according to Medscape's 2024 "Hospitalist Compensation Report," published July 26.