Care Delivery

This channel includes news on cardiovascular care delivery, including how patients are diagnosed and treated, cardiac care guidelines, policies or legislation impacting patient care, device recalls that may impact patient care, and cardiology practice management.

Portal messaging proves ‘an expansion of between-visit care rather than a substitute for in-person care’
Any lingering fears about patients using online portals to get bonus medical attention for free should be largely quieted, albeit not completely silenced, by a new study conducted at New York University.
Cardiology groups strongly oppose expansion of Medicare AI prior authorization model
ASE, ASNC and SCAI have come out against a WiSER model using AI for traditional Medicare prior authorizations.
Hospitals serving Medicaid patients prepare to take proposed payment caps on the chin
New federal limits on state-directed payments are set to cut Medicaid funding in most states. Hospitals are expected to bear the brunt since they account for the majority—84%, around $78B a year—of state-directed healthcare spends.
Nationwide nursing-home picture comes into focus with new analysis
Either the stakeholders issuing the warnings overstated the risk of widespread closings—or COVID-era emergency funds succeeded in heading off a calamity of national proportions. Either way, patient access has taken a hit here and there.
Cardiologists and surgeons share early feedback after CMS proposed sweeping TAVR changes
Major TAVR policy changes appear to be on the way—should clinicians be excited or concerned? Leading U.S. medical societies are sharing their early reactions.

Healthcare AI newswatch: California AI hoping, the jagged AI frontier, agents bumping off bots, more

California has moved assertively to legislate guardrails around AI in healthcare. Will other states follow?

Next-generation AI agents are headed for healthcare. What will they do once they get here?

Healthcare AI agents can be classified as one of four models. In increasing order of autonomy and clinical integration, these are: foundation, assistant, partner and pioneer.

Using a left radial artery (LRA) vs. hyper-adducted right radial artery (HARRA) approach in the cath lab

Choosing left radial access in the cath lab helps cardiologists limit radiation exposure

Using a left radial artery approach in the cath lab exposes interventional cardiologists to significantly less radiation than a hyper-adducted right radial artery approach. The difference is substantial enough for researchers to declare LRA "the primary access site for cardiac catheterization."

Breast arterial calcifications (BACs) identified on screening mammograms may help identify women who face a heightened risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a new analysis published in Clinical Imaging.

Opportunistic screening: AI highlights key heart findings in mammography images

Breast artery calcifications are already visible when radiologists review mammograms, but nothing typically happens with them. Researchers aimed to see if AI could help translate those findings into an easy-to-understand cardiovascular risk score.

FDA announces recall of Medtronic interventional radiology devices after 17 injuries, 4 deaths

One product is being pulled from the market, and the other is receiving updated instructions for use.

Healthcare AI newswatch: Payer AI regulation please, pharmacy AI, nurses v. AI redux

Unionized nurses: ‘AI overrides our expertise and degrades the quality of care.’

artificial intelligence AI in healthcare equity equality disparities

Will AI help or hurt the cause of healthcare equality?

AI has a long way to go before it meaningfully closes disparities in healthcare access and delivery. In fact, even when aimed at that goal, the technology can backfire.

Healthcare AI newswatch: Ambient AI costs, healthcare AI holdouts, an 86-year-old AI innovator, more

Meet an 86-year-old IT entrepreneur who recently beefed up his AI skills in a challenging postgraduate program.

Care Delivery

Portal messaging proves ‘an expansion of between-visit care rather than a substitute for in-person care’

Cardiology groups strongly oppose expansion of Medicare AI prior authorization model

Hospitals serving Medicaid patients prepare to take proposed payment caps on the chin

Nationwide nursing-home picture comes into focus with new analysis

Cardiologists and surgeons share early feedback after CMS proposed sweeping TAVR changes