MIPPA: Are You Accredited Yet?
MAY 2011 | On the first day of 2012, private outpatient imaging centers providing MRI, CT, PET exams and nuclear medicine procedures will need accreditation for Medicare to reimburse for the technical component under Part B of the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, as required by the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA).
Are providers ready?
We asked the three designated accreditation agencies: Joint Commission, the American College of Radiology (ACR), and the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC).
Source: DiagnosticImaging.com, May 2011 Issue
Read the article»
Health 411: There are limits to how much a doctor or hospital may charge for medical
MAY 2011 | My doctor wants me to visit a private facility for several CT scans. I know that this facility is near a hospital that was involved in radiation overexposure of patients because equipment was not properly calibrated. How can a prospective consumer find out if an imaging center is safe?
There is no one place consumers can go to check on the quality of imaging centers. Still, there are resources to help evaluate if the provider delivers quality care.
Source: Health 411 Column, May 16, 2011
Read the article»
What’s Happening with Lab Accreditation
Process and Requirements
MARCH 2011 | SDMS is a strong proponent of lab
accreditation. SDMS’s policy statement on
accreditation says that the “SDMS supports
accreditation by a nationally recognized
accrediting body of all facilities and clinical
practices that employ sonographers and
provide sonographic services for diagnostic or
screening purposes.” Additionally, the SDMS
believes that all sonographers in an accredited
facility should be credentialed in each of the
sonographic specialties in which they provide
patient services.
Source: SDMS NewsWave, March 2011 Issue
Read the article»
FDA to Consider Expanding Indication for Carotid Stenting to Standard-Risk
Surgical Patients
JANUARY 2011 | Should patients at standard risk for adverse events from carotid endarterectomy be treated with carotid artery stenting? That
is the question a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel will grapple with this Wednesday as panel members gather to make recommendations and vote
on an expanded indication for the RX Acculink Carotid Stent System (Abbott, Abbott Park, IL).
Source: heartwire/Medscape.com
Read the article»
MIPPA Accreditation Countdown: ACR, IAC, or Joint Commission?
SEPTEMBER 2010 | In 2008, when Congress passed the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), the January 2012 accreditation deadline for providers of advanced imaging seemed distant, but it’s near enough to call for action now. For those advanced diagnostic imaging services (ADIS) providers still unaccredited, the choices available in accrediting bodies have also become clear since the law passed: The ACR®, the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC), and the Joint Commission are the only accrediting organizations approved by CMS to handle MIPPA accreditations.
Source: Radiology Business Journal/ImagingBiz.com
Read the article»
Raising the Bar for Lower Dose — A Credible Edge
AUGUST 2010 | Accreditation promises many benefits including a chance to build trust with parents and referring physicians.
On January 1, 2012, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will require imaging centers that offer advanced imaging services to get accreditation from one of three CMS-designated bodies if they want to continue to receive reimbursement for the procedures from CMS. And since third-party payors often follow CMS' lead, these reimbursements are likely to be impacted as well. With CMS, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the medical community itself paying more attention to radiation dose, accreditation provides a way to ensure and advertise safety, which can be an advantage in drawing referring physicians and concerned parents.
Source:Imaging Economics
Read the article»
How to Provide Quality Assurance in the Vascular Lab
JULY 2010 | Quality assurance (QA) in the vascular ultrasound laboratory can be a laborious process, and not much fun. But this crucial task isn't just about generating statistics; it's what you do with that knowledge that counts, according to an expert on ultrasound QA.
Read the article»
MIPPA Accreditation: 20 Months to Go
APRIL 2010 | As the deadline inches closer, radiology providers around the country are scrambling to meet new CMS accreditation requirements for MRI, CT, and nuclear medicine. By mandate of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), in order to receive Medicare reimbursement for these modalities, imaging centers must be accredited by the Joint Commission, the ACR®, or the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) on January 1, 2012.
Source:Medical Imaging Review
Read the article»
CMS Backs Opposing Imaging Center
Accreditation Plans
MARCH 2010 | Two approved organizations focus on image quality while third
focuses on processes and procedures. Source: DiagnosticImaging.com
Read the article»
Radiation Gets Extreme Closeup
FEBRUARY 2010 | Industry stakeholders said last week that they stand ready to work with the Food and Drug Administration on its newly announced initiative to reduce patient exposure to excess radiation during imaging procedures.
But some groups expressed uncertainty about whether one or more of the agency’s proposed actions are currently feasible.
Source:ModernHealthcare.com
Read the article»
Download FDA's Initiative to Reduce Unnecessary Radiation Exposure
from Medical Imaging press release»
IAC Receives Designation by CMS as Accrediting Organization for MIPPA
JANUARY 2010 | As part of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), by January 1, 2012, all nonhospital providers of advanced diagnostic imaging, inclusive of Nuclear Medicine, MR, CT and PET, must obtain accreditation as a condition for reimbursement.
Read the press release»
CMS Announces Approved Radiology Accrediting Organizations
JANUARY 2010 | The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that the American College of Radiology (ACR), the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission
(IAC), and The Joint Commission (TJC) have been approved as the exclusive accrediting organizations for compliance with the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA). Source: Imaging Economics
Read the article»
CMS Imaging Accreditation Decision Allows Continued Self-referral
JANUARY 2010 | The American College of Cardiology (ACC) answers FAQs about meeting the MIPPA requirement. Source: CardioSource — American College of Cardiology
Read the article»
Back to top»
|
