title: Cardiovascular imaging payment and reimbursement systems: understanding the past and present in order to guide the future.
abstract: Uncertainty regarding the future of cardiovascular (CV) services and reimbursement systems in this era of rapid change in health care delivery may lead to further confusion among imagers. This article provides a brief history of national payment and reimbursement systems, and discusses potential changes that will impact CV imaging in the coming years. Data over the last decade are presented on payment and utilization of services to demonstrate the impact of reimbursement reforms and education on imaging use.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine (Cardiovascular Medicine) and Penn Cardiovascular Institute, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Electronic address: ferrariv@mail.med.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Victor A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Ferrari
authors.affiliation: American College of Cardiology, Washington, DC.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Whitman
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: James C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Blankenship
authors.affiliation: David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Budoff
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: MedStar Health Research Institute and Georgetown University, Washington, DC.
authors.forename: Neil J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Weissman
authors.affiliation: Imaging and Heart and Vascular Institutes, Cleveland Clinic and Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio.
authors.forename: Manuel D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Cerqueira
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000191:economics*; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000191:economics* / Q000379:methods; D005544:Forecasting; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000639:trends; D006291:Health Policy / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D007349:Insurance, Health, Reimbursement / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000639:trends; D006278:Medicare / Q000191:economics; D011050:Policy Making; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D014481:United States