Healthcare is ever-changing, so it’s important to stay up to date on advancements and issues that may impact the development, operation, maintenance, and growth of your services. Here are some important developments:
Remote Diagnostic Monitoring Progress: Medicare Payment Increase, GAO Study, Legislation Pending
The 2016 Medicare physician payment fee schedule includes a significant increase in payment for a critical diagnostic test used to diagnose cardiac arrhythmias and other heart rhythm disorders – mobile outpatient cardiac telemetry. The payment increase reflects Medicare’s recognition of some of the unique costs associated with providing remote diagnostic monitoring services including wireless transmission of clinical data. Continue Reading…
CMS pushes back deadline for imaging decision support
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has postponed its January 1, 2017, deadline for physicians to start ordering advanced imaging studies with clinical decision-support software that is based on appropriate use criteria. The deadline is currently on hold, according to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule released last month. The mandate, established last year, will require outpatient clinicians to use CDS tools to consult appropriate use criteria when ordering MRI, CT and nuclear imaging exams. Continue Reading…
Transitional Care Interventions Cut Risk of Readmission in CHF
For patients with congestive heart failure, transitional care interventions (TCIs), especially high-intensity TCIs, are effective for reducing the risks of readmission and emergency department visits, according to a review published in the November/December issue of the Annals of Family Medicine. Continue Reading…
SPRINT trial finds lowering systolic blood pressure target improves outcomes
For adults who were at least 50, with an increased risk of cardiovascular events and who did not have diabetes, reducing the systolic blood pressure target to less than 120 mm Hg led to lower rates of fatal and nonfatal major cardiovascular events and death from any cause compared with the standard target of less than 140 mm Hg. These findings, from the SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial) study, were presented on November 9 at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions and simultaneously published online in the New England Journal of Medicine. Continue Reading…
Save the Date: Nuclear Cardiology Today
The American Society of Nuclear Cardiology will host Nuclear Cardiology Today: A Comprehensive Review and Update on April 29-May 1, 2016, at the Chicago Marriott O’Hare. Continue Reading…
