Cassling Blog

Stay informed with best practices and resources on the issues that matter most in imaging.

Update on CMS Law Intended to Cut Medicare Payments for Older X-ray Technologies

Last month, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published the 2017 proposed rules for the Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (HOPPS). They included a draft rule on the reimbursement cuts that will affect older X-ray technologies—though there wasn’t a significant update. As you may recall, Congress... Read more

Implementing a Viable Lung Cancer Screening Program – Part 4

Is your facility planning on implementing a low-dose CT (LDCT) lung cancer screening program? If so, you’ll want to hear these lessons learned from Leslie Ciancibello, RT, R, CT, from the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center. Lessons Learned From Implementing a LDCT Lung Cancer Screening Program Implementing a... Read more

Implementing a Viable Lung Cancer Screening Program – Part 3

To have a successful low-dose CT (LDCT) lung cancer screening program, several stakeholders—including referring physicians, technologists and schedulers—need to understand key elements of the program. In part three of our video blog series about LDCT lung cancer screening programs, Leslie Ciancibello, RT, R, CT, from the... Read more

Implementing a Viable Lung Cancer Screening Program – Part 2

In part two of our video blog series about low-dose CT lung cancer screening programs, Leslie Ciancibello, RT, R, CT, from the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, discusses key factors that impact screening volume and inclusion/exclusion criteria. Factors that Impact LDCT Lung Cancer Screening Program Volume When... Read more

Implementing a Viable Lung Cancer Screening Program – Part 1

Low-dose CT (LDCT) lung cancer screenings are growing in popularity, with hundreds (if not thousands) of hospitals in the consideration or initial stages of program implementation. Implementing a successful lung cancer screening program takes a coordinated effort. In our four part video blog series, Leslie Ciancibello, RT,... Read more

Future Volume Growth in Imaging: Video Series

If you’re an imaging provider, chances are something is keeping you up at night. There’s a lot to know with regard to the market, such as understanding sources of imaging volume growth and declines and predicting future utilization needs and rates. In a previous Cassling webinar presented by The Advisory Board Company,... Read more

AHA Overreacts to Site-neutral Payment Regulations

On July 6th, the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS) released the draft rule for the 2017 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System. Keep in mind, this is a draft rule and CMS is actively looking for comment on a number of their proposals; so, there is a possibility that the items inside of the rule can —... Read more

Understanding Site-Neutral Payments: Video Series

The Medicare program currently pays significantly different rates for services provided in different settings, and site-neutral payments have been considered as one way of eliminating the payment gap. However, that option has proven to be a contentious issue. In a previous Cassling webinar presented by The Advisory Board... Read more

Making Sense of Your People Puzzle

Are you more “task oriented” or “people oriented?” Are you more outgoing or reserved? What about your staff and patients? How are your interactions with them? About 10 years ago, I was exposed to the DISC model of human behavior. Since that time, I have made it my mission to not only “see patients” but to connect with... Read more

Freestanding Emergency Departments are Spreading, Expanding Patient Care Options

One of the fastest-growing trends in healthcare is not happening at a university medical center or cancer research facility, but at your neighborhood shopping center, next door to Starbucks. Freestanding emergency departments (FSEDs) – EDs not attached to a hospital – are proliferating in highly populated suburbia, thanks... Read more

Four Critical Components to Achieve Patient Satisfaction

A trip into the healthcare maze can be a frightening, frustrating and lengthy experience for patients. It’s not uncommon to hear patients refrain: “Expect the worst. Hope for the best. Be prepared to wait, be uncomfortable and be ignored.” Being a healthcare provider has its own challenges as well. “How am I ever going to... Read more

Accurate Diagnosis: The Conduit for Value-Based Care

By: David Fisher, Head of Global Policy and Government Affairs at Siemens Healthineers Our changing healthcare system requires all of us to change along with it. Just as medical device manufacturers have to adjust to increased scrutiny of value, so do hospitals, physicians and health IT manufacturers need to modify based... Read more

3D Digital Breast Tomosynthesis Improves Outcomes and Reduces Costs

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide, and when it comes to finding cancer—the sooner the better. There has been some debate in the women’s health community about what the right age is for women to start undergoing breast cancer screenings. Many recommend that women of higher risk (which includes... Read more

Why Hospitals and Health Systems Must Prove Their Value

By Ethan Brosowsky, Director and National Spokesperson, The Advisory Board Company Five years after the signing of the Affordable Care Act, hospital and health system leaders sit at the center of a dizzying array of efforts to rein in healthcare spending. Major purchasers, including Medicare, Medicaid, health plans,... Read more

Bipartisan Budget Act Means No New Off-Campus Hospital Outpatient Imaging Departments

If you attended Cassling’s recent webinar, Predictions for Healthcare in 2016 & Beyond, one of the major trends we discussed was the shift to value. A number of initiatives have come out of the Affordable Care Act to cut Medicare fee-for-service payments and reward value instead of volume, but a new, recent piece of... Read more