Scientific Advances, Broader Imaging Role Drive Utilization, Says NEMA
Rapid increases in utilization of medical imaging arise from new scientific advances that allow physicians to see inside the human body and that have brought about a major transformation in how physicians practice medicine and how medical delivery is structured, according to Donald Rucker, Chief Medical Officer of Siemens Medical Solutions USA, testifying on behalf of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association at the July 18 hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. Click to see complete testimony.
"The power of imaging to offer more precise and less-invasive care has sparked what can only be described as a fundamental transformation in medicine," said Rucker in a prepared statement. "Physicians can now use imaging for more conditions, for more patients, and for a much broader array of purposes than ever before."
Rucker said that scientific and technical advances-driven by computing power that doubles every 18 months-have allowed physicians to provide new kinds of care and in new ways, such as PET scans that reduce guesswork in judging the effect of cancer drugs on a tumor. Imaging has also given physicians vast amounts of new information to better diagnose and treat patients, such as the ability of CT and MRI to visualize and pinpoint brain tumors and aneurysms, said Rucker. In addition, imaging is no longer used only for diagnosis, but also for treating and managing medical conditions.
"In fact, imaging has become a standard of modern care for virtually all major medical conditions and disease," said Rucker. "This include cancer, stroke, heart disease, trauma, and abdominal and neurological conditions."
Rucker said that these broad, patient-centered changes that are driving increased utilization are often overlooked in policy discussions. Instead, the assumption is that financial incentives of providers lie at the heart of rapid utilization growth. "No one can doubt that financial incentives play a role in the use of imaging. But the impact of these incentives pales in comparison to these broader, patient-centered changes," said Rucker.
He said that NEMA encouraged Congress to support public policies that recognize this broader context of utilization growth. He said that payment reductions such as those recently passed by Congress in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 would harm patient access to imaging technologies.
NEMA is the world's largest association representing manufacturers of medical imaging equipment.
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