As a critically important subset of the US healthcare industry, medical imaging is under pressure.  In spite of providing some of the most clinically productive and cost effective tools for disease and acute diagnostics in modern history, medical imaging utilization continues to get scrutinized.

As the healthcare moves away from “fee for service” toward “pay for performance” (“P4P”), the future of imaging reimbursement indicates continued pressure. While P4P continues to gain momentum in various forms, imaging providers are left in the difficult position of being penalized for responding to the referring physician diagnostic requests while the pressure to improve quality and efficiency persists from the market.

Alternatives to traditional imaging operational and organizational methodologies must be considered. Without meaningful, cost effective support, long term timely access to quality imaging services could be at risk as imaging providers struggle to survive the onslaught.

A need exists for high quality imaging providers to collaborate and leverage the best practices, business intelligence, data and message to strengthen and improve medical imaging long term.

National Imaging Network is the facilitation tool for that collaborative approach.