Vendors Will Engage in Aggressive Price Competition to Win Public Tenders, According to Findings from Decision Resources Group BURLINGTON, Mass., Feb. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources Group finds that expansion of the European market for picture archiving and communication systems (PACS), radiology information systems (RIS) and cardiovascular information systems (CVIS) will be hindered by the debt crisis and radiology cuts in the region. The resulting budget constraints have led to deferred purchases of new and replacement PACS, RIS and CVIS for many countries in 2013, as well as the cancellation of a significant number of public tenders for these systems, particularly in the more severely affected markets in Italy and Spain.

Two aspects of the SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment and Modernization Act of 2014 have been widely reported in the radiology press; less has been said about the language in HR 4015/S 2000 that would eliminate penalties for eligible professionals who fail to comply with meaningful-use criteria by 2017.

Detours notwithstanding, radiology is making slow progress toward the demonstration of meaningful use of health IT

As health systems prepare for value-based health care, CIOs walk a tightrope between consolidating enterprise IT and providing the functionality that radiologists require

In dissecting stage 2 of meaningful use, Alberto Goldszal, PhD, summarizes the meaningful-use challenge for radiologists: “In the meaningful-use rules, you are going to see some specific examples of things that are changing the radiology workflow that are perceived as a contraindication for radiology efficiency,” he says. “Overall, it does improve patient care—at least, that is the intended goal.”

On January 29, 2014, Michael Peters, senior director of legislative and regulatory affairs, for the ACR®, presented a webinar—Navigating the MU Pathway: Stages 1 and 2—sponsored by FUJIFILM Medical Systems.

The persistent nudge of government policy has undoubtedly pushed the health-care world into modern times. Whether welcome or not, mandates such as meaningful use have made concepts such as patient engagement a priority among RIS/PACS design teams across the country.

From apps to telemedicine and beyond, technology has become a linchpin for patient engagement. The RSNA Image Share network represents a prime example.