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Will Congress Stop Medicare Cuts? | New AI Test Bed
November 18, 2024
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Together with
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“Launch Days are evolving—they’re becoming bigger, bolder, and more impactful.”
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Amine Korchi, MD, on the recent trend of imaging vendors hosting pre-RSNA launch days.
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Several major trends are certain to dominate the discussion at RSNA 2024, including cloud-based radiology and AI. That’s according to Sonia Gupta, MD, chief medical officer of enterprise imaging at Optum, in this edition of The Imaging Wire Show.
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Imaging Policy & Legislation
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Radiologists find themselves once again in a familiar position, facing CMS cuts in Medicare and Medicaid physician payments for 2025. A new analysis by revenue cycle management company Healthcare Administrative Partners details the impact of the reductions, as well as other reimbursement changes set to take effect next year.
CMS has been driving down radiology reimbursement for years, a trend widely seen as part of the agency’s effort to shift funding from medical specialties to primary care.
- That’s having an impact on physician pay, as a study last week found that private-practice diagnostic radiologists have seen inflation-adjusted salaries decline at a -1% annual rate since 2014.
That trend is set to continue in 2025, with CMS publishing its final rule for the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule that affirms most of the changes it proposed in July. In the new article, HAP’s Sandy Coffta unpacks the changes, which include …
- A new conversion factor of $32.3465 (down from $33.2875).
- Payment reductions of -2.8% for radiology and nuclear medicine, and -4.8% for interventional radiology.
But not all of the changes are negative. Other 2025 policies that affect radiology include …
- Reimbursement for CT colonography for Medicare beneficiaries at a rate of $108.68 for the professional component.
- New codes for reporting MRI safety procedures.
- New quality category measures in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System.
CMS proposed similar cuts last year, but Congress swooped in at the last minute to roll them back with the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which applied a positive 2.93% upward adjustment.
- Several bills in Congress now would likewise stave off the 2025 reductions (H.R. 2474 and H.R. 10073), but time is running out to pass them before the current Congressional session expires on January 3, 2025.
The Takeaway
Will Congress once again ride to the rescue and stave off Medicare reimbursement cuts, as it did a year ago? Or will things be different this time, given the political turbulence that’s shaking Washington, DC? We’ll find out in a few weeks.
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Harnessing the Power of a Connected Network
Check out the next Road to RSNA virtual session from Microsoft at 2 pm ET on November 20 to discover how their network, powered by Microsoft Azure, can help increase efficiencies and improve patient care while building a scalable foundation for the future.
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Discover Prenuvo at RSNA 2024
Discover how Prenuvo is advancing research and redefining the future of healthcare at booth #1239 at RSNA 2024. Learn about their cutting-edge MRI technology first-hand and explore partnership opportunities.
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Meet Merge at RSNA 2024
Merge is looking forward to sharing a wide range of news, innovations, and updates at RSNA 2024. Join them at booth #6100 to explore how their imaging solutions put your workspaces, clinicians, and transformation into focus.
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- New AI Test Bed: A new testing environment for analyzing and validating AI algorithms was launched by a coalition of academic institutions. The Healthcare AI Challenge will host new AI solutions that can be accessed by healthcare professionals who will provide feedback on performance and utility. The feedback will then be incorporated into publicly available insights and rankings that AI developers can use to fine-tune their algorithms. Radiology is the first specialty in what will be a series of rollouts for the Mass General Brigham-hosted project.
- X-Ray for Early Lung Cancer Detection: Is it time to embrace X-ray for early lung cancer detection? This Imaging Wire article from Qure.ai examines how artificial intelligence can boost chest X-ray’s value to radiologists by helping them screen patients for disease when they’re getting an unrelated medical exam – the definition of opportunistic screening. For example, AI can analyze chest radiographs and flag nodules for a radiologist’s attention – possibly helping compensate for low levels of CT lung cancer screening in many countries.
- When Follow-Up Falls Short: Why don’t referring physicians comply with radiologist recommendations for additional follow-up imaging? A new study in JACR takes a look at some possible reasons. The good news is referring doctors agreed with 89% of the 9.4k imaging recommendations reviewed. But lower agreement rates were found with surgeons (OR=0.73) or if the recommended study was a nuclear medicine exam (OR=0.64). Higher rates were for recommendations made by thoracic radiologists (OR=1.41) or those with longer follow-up periods (OR=1.03).
- deepc Targets Reporting with AIR Launch: The red-hot radiology reporting segment has another new entrant. AI platform company deepc launched an AI-based reporting solution with the debut of deepc OS AIR, which integrates with existing structured and unstructured reporting software to automatically pre-populate reports with findings from AI algorithms. AIR is offered as part of the company’s deepcOS platform and is designed to improve radiology reporting by integrating AI findings into radiologist workflow.
- Ultrasound Contrast Safety: The safety of ultrasound contrast agents has been a point of concern since the FDA required black-box warnings in 2007. A new study in American Journal of Cardiology compared the safety of the three main echo contrast agents – Optison, Lumason, and Definity – by reviewing literature and the FDA’s adverse event reports from 2019-2023. Optison had a lower odds ratio of serious adverse events versus Lumason (OR=0.59) and Definity (OR=0.63). The study was funded by GE HealthCare, the maker of Optison.
- 5T vs. 3T for Cardiac MRI: Are the MRI field-strength wars back? A new study in Radiology compares United Imaging Healthcare’s uMR Jupiter 5T MRI scanner to a conventional 3T system for assessing myocardial fibrosis. In a small study in China, researchers scanned 18 patients and compared relevant metrics like image quality, SNR, and CNR. While there was no statistically significant difference in median image quality, the 5T scanner had higher SNR (184 vs. 126) and CNR for normal myocardium (51 vs. 17) and pericardial fat (21 vs. -5).
- ARIA Software Gets FDA Clearance: The FDA cleared icometrix’s icobrain aria AI software for detecting amyloid-related imaging abnormalities in Alzheimer’s disease patients. ARIAs can occur as a side effect of treatment with new amyloid-targeting drugs, and range from brain swelling to hemorrhages. MRI scans are recommended to monitor patients, but visual image analysis can be time-consuming. icobrain aria automates the process, generating reports that can help radiologists detect and classify ARIA.
- MRI Shows MS Link to Warm Weather: Researchers from Spain used MRI to confirm a long-suspected link between multiple sclerosis outbreaks and warmer summer weather. In a paper in Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders, researchers scanned 51 patients over a year, finding MRI detected more MS lesions than expected in July and August, and there was a 6% higher chance of MRI-detected lesions when nights were warmer than 20°C (68°F). Other studies have also found seasonal variation in MS outbreaks.
- Subtle to Unveil Subtle-ELITE Software: Subtle Medical plans to highlight an updated version of its MRI reconstruction software – called Subtle-ELITE – at RSNA 2024. The solution is pending FDA clearance and can reduce MRI scan times by as much as 80%. It also includes the company’s SubtleHD, SubtleSYNTH, and SubtleALIGN applications. Subtle also plans to highlight its recent relationships with Bracco, Telix Pharmaceuticals, and Bayer.
- AI Guides Breast Surgeries: The TumorSight Viz application from SimBioSys helped guide breast cancer surgeries in a new paper in Nature’s npj Breast Cancer. Researchers used the software to create 3D visualizations of breast tumors based on MR images, and in 98 patients they found that tumor data extracted from TumorSight Viz correlated well with radiologist annotations. Separately, SimBioSys announced a second FDA clearance for TumorSight Viz (which was first cleared in 2023) covering faster image processing, improved connectivity to PACS, and clinical decision support functionality.
- Konica Minolta Launches Exa Enterprise: Konica Minolta Healthcare launched Exa Enterprise, a new cloud-based enterprise image management solution based on Amazon Web Services’ HealthImaging offering. Exa Enterprise incorporates Konica Minolta’s Exa RIS/PACS platform, and includes support for third-party solutions like Apollo for clinical workflow, NewVue for radiology workflow, Clearpath Technologies for image and record sharing, and Quinsite for analytics.
- Neuro AI Firm Raises Funds: German AI developer mediaire raised €12M (12.6M) to further commercialize the company’s offerings and expand its portfolio beyond existing solutions for analyzing MRI scans of the brain, knee, and prostate. The company notes that its products – including mdprostate, mdbrain, and mdknee – are already in use at over 350 hospitals in Europe.
- CT Lung Screening in Asia: Asian countries are aggressively setting up national CT lung cancer screening programs due to the tobacco epidemic’s ravages on their populations (40% of global lung cancer deaths occur in China). For a great overview of lung screening in Asia, check out Sebastian Schmidt’s report from two recent conferences in which he analyzes screening programs from major Asian countries. Taiwan is leading the pack with a nationally funded program for the past two years, while other countries scramble to counter high lung cancer mortality rates.
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TeraRecon’s Doc Talks at RSNA 2024
Visit the TeraRecon booth #8134 at RSNA 2024 to hear captivating presentations from radiology thought leaders every day of RSNA week. Schedule a meeting today.
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AI-Driven Enterprise Imaging
Learn how to unlock the full potential of AI-driven enterprise imaging in this Lunch & Learn session with AGFA HealthCare at 12 pm on December 4 at RSNA 2024. Save your spot and RSVP today!
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Connect with United Imaging at RSNA 2024
United Imaging will be celebrating the theme of Building Intelligent Connections at RSNA 2024. Come visit the company at booth #1929 to learn about their imaging solutions and how they connect to United’s mission of Equal Healthcare for All.
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- Leading Radiology Forward at RSNA 2024: DeepHealth is leading radiology forward through AI-powered informatics and smart technology. Book a meeting today at RSNA 2024 booth #1340 to learn how they can help you achieve increased staff productivity and a better experience for patients and staff.
- The Road to Cloud-Based PACS: Radiology facilities are turning to cloud-based PACS to solve their medical image management needs in an era of workforce shortages and resource constraints. Learn about their experiences in this Imaging Wire Show with Amy Thompson of Signify Research and radiologist Marc Kohli, MD.
- Come See Enlitic at RSNA 2024: Visit Enlitic at RSNA 2024 at booth #4365 to learn how the company is revolutionizing radiology with its data standardization solutions, including data migration technology through its acquisition of Laitek. Book a demo today.
- Connecting Patients to Exceptional Care: Mach7 Technologies’ enterprise imaging solutions connect patients and clinicians across the globe to enable exceptional care. As modern healthcare evolves, so should your strategies. Schedule a demo at RSNA 2024 or stop by booth #3953 to learn more.
- Book an RSNA Meeting with Riverain: Riverain’s ClearRead technology with Clear Visual Intelligence can improve your ability to detect lung cancer with either CT or X-ray. Book at meeting with them at RSNA 2024 or drop by for a visit at booth #4523.
- Learn to Improve Interoperability and Patient Engagement: Join industry leaders at RSNA for a Lunch & Learn hosted by PocketHealth where they’ll share real-world strategies for enhancing patient engagement, tackling interoperability challenges, and reducing costs despite budget and staffing constraints. RSVP required!
- Get Your Head Around AI for Neuroradiology: Check out the latest blog from Blackford on how advances in deep learning algorithms for neurology imaging are improving outcomes and easing the burden on radiologists.
- BoneView vs. ChatGPT for Wrist Fractures: Learn how Gleamer’s BoneView AI solution demonstrated expert-level performance for detecting distal radius fractures on wrist radiographs in a new clinical study, significantly outperforming ChatGPT 4 in sensitivity.
- Meet with Medality at RSNA 2024: Book a visit with Medality at RSNA 2024 or swing by their booth #3140 to see how they are at the forefront of practice growth and training in radiology.
- Discover the Power of an AI Ecosystem: Get the insights you need to fuel your AI strategy in the Bayer Visionary Theater at RSNA 2024. Preview the theater sessions today and plan to attend at booth #2514 – and don’t forget to experience the Tunnel of Innovation!
- A Sneak Peak at Intelerad for RSNA 2024: Join Intelerad for a webinar at 1 pm ET on November 19 to get a sneak peek at what they’ll be highlighting at RSNA 2024. Company executives will explore the transformative impact of AI and cloud technology on radiology.
- The Leader in Molecular Imaging: United Imaging’s uMI portfolio of solutions is designed to help you lead the way in molecular imaging. From digital PET/CT systems designed to stand the test of time to the cutting-edge uEXPLORER total-body PET scanner, discover the uMI difference today.
- Book an RSNA Meeting with CARPL: Explore radiology AI like never before by booking a meeting with CARPL at RSNA 2024, or drop by booth #5733 to tune in to any of seven research presentations across the show.
- Imaging Workflows that Actually Work: Not a fan of medical image exchange on discs? Then check out Clearpath and find out how it’s removing obstacles to better radiology workflow. Request a demo today.
- Your Trusted Enterprise Imaging Cloud Partner: Visit Optum at RSNA 2024 booth #6750 to learn how their cloud-based enterprise imaging solutions can enhance the potential of your imaging data for efficient, cost-effective care.
- Fully Automated AI for Mitral Regurgitation Grading: Echo AI can help address challenges with mitral regurgitation assessment quality and efficiency. Find out how researchers used Us2.ai’s fully automated echo workflow for grading MR severity and predicting one-year mortality.
- Breakthroughs in Healthcare. For Everyone: Join Siemens Healthineers at RSNA 2024 booth #2529 to experience the future of healthcare. Explore cutting-edge innovations, connect with leading experts, and collaborate with industry professionals in live demonstrations.
- Faster MRI Scans with No Compromise: What if you could speed up your MRI scans with no compromise on image quality? In this video, hear from SpinTech MRI how their STAGE software is making this vision a reality.
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