Business Intelligence

Providers utilize business intelligence to monitor referral patterns and collaborate with clinicians who order their services. Such analytics tools have also been deployed in the specialty to improve productivity, track patient satisfaction and bolster quality.

UnitedHealthcare drops most prior authorizations in rural areas as part of improvement initiative
The insurance giant has been piloting a program to speed up reimbursement to hospitals in 10 states, reducing delays by roughly 50%. Now, the company said it will work to lift prior authorization barriers on patient care delivery. The intent is to roll out these changes nationwide by the end of 2026, UnitedHealthcare confirmed.
Healthcare administrators: Need help holding PCPs accountable? Here it is from focus-group research
Family physicians and other primary care providers don’t mind being held to account for care quality by healthcare administrators. The rub is that multiple other stakeholders often demand similar levels of answerability, pulling the doctors in different directions at once.
Prescription drug commercials anger some, please others
Pharmaceutical companies are spending close to $10 billion per year on direct-to-consumer advertising in the U.S. Only the entertainment industry spends more. Is that a good thing?
California Democrats propose new corporate tax to offset Medicaid cuts
The idea was floated as part of a proposed budget for the state released by Democrats in the Senate. If passed, only the top 2% of corporations in California would be impacted. The levy would generate $5 billion to $8 billion annually for Medicaid.
Cardiology practice launches walk-in clinic in Pennsylvania
The new clinic wants to keep patients out of hospital EDs when possible and provide care at a lower cost.

6 actions to help build a better workplace in the wake of the pandemic

Whatever specific shape work takes in the near and distant future, it’s likely the COVID-19 era will be looked back upon as a before-and-after dividing line.

FDA greenlights ultrasound MSK software with AI

Clarius Mobile Health of Vancouver, B.C., has won FDA approval to market an AI model that works with the company’s handheld point-of-care ultrasound devices to identify and measure tendons of the foot, ankle and knee.

Global survey finds radiology social-media users like YouTube best

Instagram is a fairly close second, Facebook a fighting third, Twitter a respectable fourth and LinkedIn a visible fifth.

CardiacSense, an Israel-based healthcare technology company, gained FDA clearance for its CSF-3 medical watch

Regulatory Roundup: FDA clears new medical watch, considers empagliflozin for CKD and much more

Our monthly review of FDA-related news items in the world of cardiology includes updates from CardiacSense, MedAlliance, Lupin, Realize Medical and Eli Lilly and Company.

Portable orthopedic tomosynthesis cleared for U.S. sales

The FDA has cleared U.K.-based Adaptix to market a 3D X-ray system that, according to the company, images hands, feet and elbows “at a fraction of the radiation dose and per-study cost of traditional CT.”

Q4 and full-year 2022 results in for GE HealthCare

GE HealthCare has some favorable tailwinds at its back as it proceeds into its first year unattached to a certain venerable parent corporation.

Burnout is causing clinicians to say goodbye to healthcare

The latest findings highlight the worsening crisis of burnout among U.S. clinicians, who have frequently cited the COVID-19 pandemic as a major impact.

The Nanox ARC cold-cathode, tomosythesis 3D X-ray system is currently pending FDA clearance. If cleared, it would be the first device of its kind to offer cold-cathode X-ray tube technology and the ability to slice through the anatomy in images similar to CT scans aid diagnosis. The new type of tube also could greatly reduce the size and weight of X-ray systems. The vendor sees this system as key to its larger plan to address health disparities and access to imaging world-wide. #Nanox

VIDEO: Cold-cathode X-ray systems may disrupt the medical imaging market

Bhvita Jani, research manager at Signify Research, explains advances in cold-cathode X-ray tube technology and how this might represent a major shift in radiology imaging systems.

Business Intelligence

UnitedHealthcare drops most prior authorizations in rural areas as part of improvement initiative

Healthcare administrators: Need help holding PCPs accountable? Here it is from focus-group research

Prescription drug commercials anger some, please others

California Democrats propose new corporate tax to offset Medicaid cuts

Cardiology practice launches walk-in clinic in Pennsylvania