Cardiac imaging is scheduled for reimbursement cuts -- including a 36% hack at SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) -- under the final Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2010. On the plus side, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) also published base rates for coronary CT angiography (CCTA) and increased cardiac PET reimbursement by about 17%.  

Restricting the number of off-hours venous duplex ultrasound studies for evaluating deep vein thrombosis (DVT) can improve resource utilization without hurting patient care, according to research published in the Annals of Vascular Surgery.  

Is physician self-referral a scourge on U.S. healthcare, in which poor-quality imaging studies drive a sharp spike in imaging overutilization? Or is it a service of convenience to patients, in which nonradiologist physicians provide trained interpretations on equipment they own or lease? The answer might surprise you.  

CHICAGO - Radiation oncology is celebrating in the Windy City this week after learning that a 19% cut in Medicare reimbursement for radiation oncology procedures won't happen after all. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on October 30 announced new payment rates for 2010 that call for a far less severe cut in radiation oncology payments.  

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) didn't back down from its previously announced plan to increase the utilization rate for imaging equipment from 50% to 90%. It's now going to take an act of Congress -- literally -- for medical imaging to avoid what could be severe cuts in Medicare reimbursement starting January 1, 2010.  

Using "because" and giving people a reason to support your position is extremely persuasive and can go a long way in conversations with business relationships and contract negotiations, explains Mark Weiss in Part 8 of the Profit Center series.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters), Oct 30 - Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives unveiled a broad healthcare overhaul on Thursday that would transform the insurance market, create a government-run insurance plan, and levy new taxes on the rich.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters), Oct 27 - The U.S. healthcare system is just as wasteful as President Barack Obama says it is, and proposed reforms could be paid for by fixing some of the most obvious inefficiencies, preventing mistakes and fighting fraud, according to a Thomson Reuters report released on Monday.  

An integrated radiation oncology telemedicine system has the potential to yield significant improvements in oncologic care, according to research from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.  

In 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it wanted to make it easier for full-field digital mammography (FFDM) systems to get to market by relaxing the approval process. Three years later, the mammography industry is still waiting, a delay that some experts believe is contributing to higher prices for FFDM technology and limited access to new innovations.  

A few well-chosen words of encouragement can go a long way in relaxing a nervous patient about to undergo an MRI scan. Taken one step further, new research also suggests that patient self-hypnosis can reduce the number of cancelled and rescheduled exams.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters), Oct 8 - A U.S. Senate Finance Committee health plan would cost $829 billion and cut the budget deficit by $81 billion over 10 years, nonpartisan budget analysts said on Wednesday in a report that could bolster President Barack Obama's healthcare reform drive.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters), Oct 8 - A U.S. Senate healthcare reform bill would raise $29 billion more in taxes on healthcare companies over 10 years than originally estimated, congressional experts said on Tuesday, fueling new Republican attacks on the legislation.  

A radiology information system (RIS) has the potential to decrease report turnaround time and increase the revenue of a radiology practice, but its impact varies by modality, according to a report published in the October issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters), Sep 29 - A broad healthcare overhaul emerged unscathed on Friday from the first week of Senate committee debate, with Chairman Max Baucus keeping fellow Democrats in line and shielding key elements from Republican attacks.  

Electronic medical record systems allow alerts regarding critical results of abnormal imaging exams to be transmitted at record speed to referring physicians. But this doesn't mean that the recipients are reading these important findings, according to a new study released in the Archives of Internal Medicine.