Most of the world marks the start of summer with the summer solstice, that glorious moment when the tilt of the planet’s semi-axis is most inclined to the sun. We initiate the season with the launch of the annual survey to rank The Radiology 100: The 100 Largest Private Radiology Practices. Jointly produced by Radiology Business Journal and CliftonLarsonAllen, the ranking enters its seventh year in 2014.

Consumers who purchased health insurance through the state and federal exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act may find their current policies less affordable in 2015. At the same time, competition among insurers is expected to heat up, with many moving into new markets and those with low enrollments cutting rates, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

 FUJIFILM MEDICAL SYSTEMS U.S.A., INC. DEMONSTRATES LATEST INNOVATIONS IN ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY IMAGE MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING AT THE 25th ANNUAL SCIENTIFIC SESSIONS OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY Stamford, Conn., June 19, 2014 (Booth #301) – FUJIFILM Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. will demonstrate the next generation of Synapse Cardiovascular, that will allow cardiologists and clinical professionals to enhance patient care through advanced reporting applications  at the 25th Annual Scientific Session of the American Society of Echocardiography in Portland, Oregon. “With Synapse, our users are able to perform their job more efficiently and ultimately allow them to concentrate more on the patient and improve patient outcomes,” said Jim Morgan, vice president of Medical Informatics, FUJIFILM Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. “At ASE, we will demonstrate an upcoming clinical reporting platform that will feature a new user interface and layout options that has the potential to benefit your entire practice.” Following is a summary of offerings:Synapse Cardiovascular helps cardiologists in a variety of clinical areas efficiently and confidently interpret images and compose structured reports with a streamlined workflow. The system has powerful capabilities designed specifically for, echocardiography, cardiac catheterization and invasive peripheral vascular, nuclear cardiology, vascular ultrasound, ECG management, CT, and Cardiac MRI workflows. Fujifilm's Synapse Cardiovascular is an essential addition to any clinical workplace.  At the show, attendees will also be able to see a works-in-progress demonstration of Synapse Cardiovascular 6.0*, which will showcase intended future functionality for echocardiography. Fujifilm will also share the benefits of its zero footprint mobile application, Synapse Mobility. The application enables access to Fujifilm’s suite of Synapse products from hand-held devices, in addition to browser independence. Access to non-DICOM information from the Synapse VNA has been added to complete the universal viewing capability from EMRs such as Epic Hyperspace.  Synapse Mobility continues to demonstrate its diagnostic capability for both browser and mobile versions. To register for a demonstration at ASE 2014, please visit: http://www.fujimed.com/gateway/ase/2014/registration.html.  *Synapse Cardiovascular 6.0 will be made commercially available in the U.S. upon receipt of FDA clearance For more information about Synapse, please visit: http://cardiovascular.fujimed.com/

Computers were seized and several arrests made when state authorities raided multiple locations in a Medicaid fraud investigation into the American Imaging Center chain based in Hackensack, N.J., according to an article on the Cliffview Pilot website.

Healthcare CIOs are using increasingly diverse sources of data on which to perform analytics, according to results of a survey co-sponsored by the nonprofit eHealth Initiative and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). Many, however, have not committed significant resources or time to the activity.

The high U.S. corporate tax rate was matchmaker in the deal announced Sunday in which medical-device maker Medtronic agreed to purchase Covidien PLC for $42.9 billion, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

The nation’s big-tent physician association, the American Medical Association, took a number of actions this week at its annual meeting in Chicago, including a vote by the House of Delegates to recommend that Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance cover low-dose CT lung-cancer screening for high-risk patients.

Philadelphia, PA, June 12, 2014 – Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, announced today the acquisition of Amirsys.