The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) recently announced a partnership with KLAS Enterprises, a research firm, to accelerate and enhance industry performance and support all stakeholders in healthcare transformation.

Forget about all of the work waiting for you when you get back, there are so many compelling reasons to attend an annual meeting of one of radiology’s specialty organizations. Hearing new ideas from peers and experts, shopping for technology, software or services and networking are the obvious reasons. In this climate of change and uncertainty, one also hopes to lift one’s head from the electronic grindstone and recharge the batteries. On all of these fronts, the recent meeting of the Radiology Business Management Association did not disappoint.

Showcased at the recent Radiology Business Management Association (RBMA) Fall Educational Conference in Seattle, Wash, RBMA-U is now open and accepting online enrollments. RBMA representatives at the conference were eager to talk about the new online training resource and its application to radiology business managers at all experience levels. 

On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina—the deadliest storm of its kind in U.S. history—made its final landfall near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi with a 28-foot storm surge and a storm tide of more than 30 feet deep. Like 80 percent of New Orleans, many neighboring parishes, and a multitude of other coastal towns along the Gulf of Mexico, Bay St. Louis was devastated by the hurricane.

Obamacare is not popular. In numerous recent polls, such as one from the Kaiser Family Foundation, 47 percent of respondents said they have an unfavorable opinion of the law, while 35 percent said they viewed it favorably. The overwhelming public reaction to the new law has been less than enthusiastic, as the financial burden to patients and physicians alike has increased significantly. We will soon embark upon the second year of enrollment still questionning the effectiveness of the new law.

Contrary to the recent technical reimbursement cuts this year, which have negatively impacted diagnostic imaging operators, professional reimbursement for the same CPT codes have experienced a stable to slight decline; although, in some instances there was an increase. Modalities such as Computed Tomography (“CT”) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (“MRI”) experienced technical reimbursement declines between 1 percent and 45 percent. For many freestanding imaging operators relying heavily on governmental payors, without an increase in volume and/or expense reductions, the technical reimbursement declines directly impact the operating earnings of the business. 

Radiology business managers help practices thrive in our challenging health care climate. They possess a level of sophisticated business experience sought out by radiologists who are being forced to take time away from patient care to attend to the business responsibilities of the practice. However, a business manager who steps in to handle these duties and alleviate the pressure on physicians still needs to approach them to obtain buy-in on various major practice decisions. The larger the practice, the more daunting this task can appear. David Myrice, director of practice management for Zotec Partners, walks us through the important steps in obtaining radiologist buy-in on important practice decisions.

Medicare’s temporary freeze on payments for certain PET scans of solid tumors, which began Oct. 6 and won’t end until Nov. 11, came as no surprise. The agency announced last spring that it needed time to test and edit this part of its claims-processing system.