Annual growth in advanced diagnostic imaging has decreased from approximately 6 percent during the mid-1990s to mid-2000s to between 1 percent and 3 percent among both Medicare and commercially insured patients from 2007 to 2009, according to a study in Health Affairs.
Researchers studied Medicare data as well as data from three commercial insurers on the use of advanced diagnostic imaging, which consists of MRI, CT and nuclear medicine, including PET.
They found Medicare CT increased 14.3 percent annually from 2000 to 2005 but decreased from 7.1 percent in 2006 to 1.4 percent in 2009. Annual growth in Medicare MRI use decreased from 14 percent 2000 to 2005 to an average of 2.6 percent from 2006 to 2009.
Data from one of the commercial insurers — a multistate insurer covering 47 employer-sponsored plans — showed a similar slowing of imaging growth from 2006 to 2009. Annual growth in CT use decreased from 20.4 percent during 2002 to 2006 to 3.1 percent from 2006 to 2009. In the same time periods, MRI annual growth decreased from 16.6 percent to 1.1 percent.
The large-insurer preferred provider organization showed 0.5 percent CT imaging growth from 2007 to 2010 and steady use of MRI. The single northeastern state sample showed an annual increase in CT of 2.1 percent from 2005 to 2009, while MRI use increased 5.6 percent — an outlier among the samples, according to the study.
The authors suggested several policies — such as prior authorization, reimbursement reductions beginning in 2005 and warnings of radiation exposure — may have contributed to the general decrease in imaging use.
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Researchers studied Medicare data as well as data from three commercial insurers on the use of advanced diagnostic imaging, which consists of MRI, CT and nuclear medicine, including PET.
They found Medicare CT increased 14.3 percent annually from 2000 to 2005 but decreased from 7.1 percent in 2006 to 1.4 percent in 2009. Annual growth in Medicare MRI use decreased from 14 percent 2000 to 2005 to an average of 2.6 percent from 2006 to 2009.
Data from one of the commercial insurers — a multistate insurer covering 47 employer-sponsored plans — showed a similar slowing of imaging growth from 2006 to 2009. Annual growth in CT use decreased from 20.4 percent during 2002 to 2006 to 3.1 percent from 2006 to 2009. In the same time periods, MRI annual growth decreased from 16.6 percent to 1.1 percent.
The large-insurer preferred provider organization showed 0.5 percent CT imaging growth from 2007 to 2010 and steady use of MRI. The single northeastern state sample showed an annual increase in CT of 2.1 percent from 2005 to 2009, while MRI use increased 5.6 percent — an outlier among the samples, according to the study.
The authors suggested several policies — such as prior authorization, reimbursement reductions beginning in 2005 and warnings of radiation exposure — may have contributed to the general decrease in imaging use.
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