House passes radiologist pay hike | Imaging groups use per-diem rads to fill gaps | Prior auth. reform returns | USARad earnings

Physician, hospital and patient advocacy groups expressed concern about other provisions in the budget bill, including sizable cuts to the Medicaid program. 

These arrangements typically involve non-full-time employment, compensated on an hourly, shift or daily basis without benefits or annual salary, experts write in Pediatric Radiology. 

Sens. Roger Marshall, MD, R-Kan., and Mark Warner, D-Va., are reintroducing the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, which previously drew widespread support. 

The Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based physician group—acquired by Nanox for $30 million in 2021—logged revenue of roughly $2.6 million in Q1, up from $2.4 million last year. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it will increase medical coding staff from 40 to 2,000 and begin addressing its backlog of audits on Medicare Advantage plans in an effort to spot signs of fraud and abuse. 

The use of MRI and the “rule of 6” could significantly reduce the number of patients requiring lumbar punctures to diagnose the neurological condition.

Researchers believe a new robotic TEE system could improve the long-term health of interventional echocardiographers in addition to several other key benefits.

San Jose, California-based Vision Upright MRI allegedly failed to properly assess potential cybersecurity threats and did not notify patients in a timely fashion. 

Gov. Ron DeSantis recently signed S.B. 158 into law following its approval by the Florida legislature, while Ohio lawmakers also have proposed a similar bill. 

John Simon, MD, is a big advocate for these elective exams, but the American College of Radiology and some members of the specialty oppose this practice.