Radiology serves more unique Medicare beneficiaries than any other specialty

Radiologists serve more unique Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries, on average, than members of any other specialty group, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

The authors turned to public Medicare data to track every physician who provided services for Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries in 2013. Overall, out of 56 specialties, diagnostic radiologists served the most unique beneficiaries with an average of 3,150. Cardiologists came in at No. 2, followed by cardiac electrophysiologists, dermatologists and urologists. Fifty-six specialties overall were compared.

“This observation may in part reflect the high-volume nature of most radiology practices, as well as the very large growth in imaging utilization in recent decades,” wrote lead author Andrew B. Rosenkrantz, MD, MPA, of the department of radiology at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues. “That large number of served beneficiaries sets up radiologists to have an increasingly prominent impact in orchestrating patient care within their health systems, should they choose to take on that role.”

Diving deeper into the statistics, Rosenkrantz et al. found that the average number of unique Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries varied based on various characteristics. For example, the average for male radiologists (3,214) was higher than the average for female radiologists (2,521). The average for rural radiologists (3,551) was higher than that for urban radiologists (3,092), and the average for nonacademic radiologists (3,427) was higher than academic radiologists (1,932).

Also, with an average of 2,594, breast imagers had the highest average among subspecialists. The authors noted that breast imagers “may be able to interpret large volumes of screening examinations at a more rapid pace” than other subspecialists.

As radiologists learn more about these statistics, the authors concluded, it “may help radiology practices more effectively target patient engagement and other Imaging 3.0 efforts.”

“The sheer number of unique beneficiaries served provides radiologists with immense opportunities to expand the face of radiology, but only if they are willing to change their historic stereotype role as ‘invisible’ physicians,” they wrote. “For instance, radiologists may seek to more heavily engage patients, for example, through direct communication of examination results. Radiologists are also encouraged to more heavily embrace opportunities to partner and interact with ordering physicians, serving, for example, as champions of Image Wisely or appropriate use criteria initiatives.”