Radiology practice participation in a new payment-related survey is “urgently needed,” the American College of Radiology warned recently.
The American Medical Association first launched the data-gathering effort in July to get a better grasp of practice expenses and influence Medicare policy. Consulting firm Mathematica has sent the survey to about 430 interventional and diagnostic radiology practices and 3,000 members of the specialty. However, only seven have been returned thus far, ACR reported.
“The survey is intended to collect updated practice cost data for all medical specialties, including radiology, to ensure accurate reimbursement,” ACR said March 27, calling radiology practice participation “critical.” “Current data used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to calculate Medicare physician payment is drastically outdated, more than 15 years old,” the college added later.
Mathematica sent the survey to a total of 10,000 practices across all specialties, and the AMA recently expanded the pool to 700 more medical groups. ACR is urging radiology leaders to check their email inboxes and spam folders for messages from Mathematica, snail mail for a packet from the firm, and remind business managers to watch out for these communications.
“Complete the survey as soon as possible. The deadline to return the survey is near,” ACR said.
The American College of Cardiology also recently sent a reminder to members while emphasizing the survey’s importance.
“The study is an opportunity to communicate accurate financial information to policymakers, including members of Congress and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,” ACC said. “As the U.S. economy and healthcare system have undergone substantial changes since [2006]—including staffing costs, team-based care, inflation, new practice arrangements, and the wide-spread adoption of electronic health records and other information technology systems—practice expense payments no longer accurately reflect the resources typically required to provide physician services,” it added later.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.