“Unlike [prior authorization], this model does not delay patient care and does not hold members liable to pay for unneeded exams,” writes radiologist Mark Hiatt, MD, MBA. 

“Given recent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services coverage of CTC for CRC screening, this study and its conclusions are more important than ever,” experts write. 

Andover, Mass.-based Commonwealth Radiology Associates is teaming with Heywood Healthcare, an independent, community-owned hospital group, to deliver imaging services. 

The platform was designed to address some of the “brutal challenges” radiologists have faced over the past couple of decades.

Consulting firm Vizient is forecasting continued growth in the specialty, driven by shifts in where patients receive care, new therapies that require imaging and a rapidly aging population. 

This new guidance emphasizes that clinical and operational decisions must “remain in the ultimate control” of radiologists or other clinicians, the AMA said Monday.  

A total of 10 professional associations—also representing pain medicine, anesthesia and rehab specialists—recently messaged more than a dozen payers across the U.S. 

The uptick came during a time when the number of ED episodes increased by only 8% at the same institution, with defensive medicine one possible driver.