The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report entitled “Medicare: Trends in Beneficiaries Served and Hospital Resources Used in Implantable Medical Device Procedures.”  The report discusses trends in the use of IMD procedures – particularly orthopedic and cardiac implants — among Medicare beneficiaries from the period of 2003 to 2009. The report includes data regarding, among other things, Medicare program spending, admission rates, average lengths of stay, patient characteristics, and discharges to various post-acute care providers.