Physicians across the globe are being forced to get creative to keep their doors open and care delivered. 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread, more provider organizations appear to be joining the bandwagon to let radiologists telecommute. 

When the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) was signed into law in 2015, it answered the prayers of healthcare providers everywhere and repealed the sustainable growth rate (SGR) once and for all.

Missouri-based Mercy said that, as it braces for an influx of patients from the pandemic, pushing back any nonessential radiology procedures is the next step in its preparations. 

Two radiology professors with the University of Pennsylvania are offering advice to physicians navigating uncertainty when using chest CT for COVID-19. 

Susan G. Komen said its suggestion applies to healthy women of average risk for the disease and is aimed at minimizing exposure while freeing up “needed health capacity."

Consensus seems to be building against using computed tomography to diagnose the novel coronavirus, with another major society urging physicians away from the modality as a first-line tool. 

Overall, mortality dipped by about 1.5% on average between 2001 and 2017, with the decline more pronounced among men than women.