Cardiologist Martha Gulati, MD, lead author of the 2021 chest pain guidelines, explained how the document may have contributed to the rise of cardiac CT. "These guidelines have made it harder for people to push back and say you don't need this test," she said. 

Backers include societies representing radiologists and nuclear medicine professionals, device manufacturers, patient advocacy groups, and pharmaceutical companies. 

In addition to the hefty fine, the New York physician has agreed to relinquish ownership of his cardiology practice after exchanging kickbacks for PET and SPECT referrals for more than a decade.

“These results suggest that hospitals need to substantially improve the integration of their online pricing data with frontline staff who interact with patients," investigators wrote in JAMA Internal Medicine. 

"Under-compensation of out-of-network care will threaten the viability of smaller and independent physician practices," ACR and others charged. 

Experts offered three takeaways from their query of legal claims databases, sharing their findings in Radiology. 

ASNC President President Mouaz Al-Mallah, MD, said nuclear cardiology needs to upgrade old imaging systems and embrace new technology to deliver better value for patients. 

The Chicago-based industry giant’s goal is to aid healthcare professionals, including those without specialized training, in producing high-quality imaging exams.