Radiology administrators remain positive that diagnostic and interventional radiology will continue to grow as a profit center, according to The MarkeTech Group's Medical Imaging Confidence Index (MICI) report for the third quarter of 2024.
They're also very confident that diagnostic and interventional radiology volumes will grow monthly. But they're less sure that their departments will receive adequate Medicare reimbursement for exams and that internal operating expenses and staff costs will remain constant compared with second-quarter MICI results.
The MarkeTech Group produces the MICI report using survey response information contributed by radiology administrators and business managers who are members of its imagePRO panel. The document is made up of responses to questions about five trends radiology administrators face in the coming year.
This third-quarter report included feedback from 145 imaging directors and managers across the following U.S. geographic areas: 19% in the West North Central region; 10% in the East North Central region; 13% in the Mid-Atlantic region; 11% in the South Atlantic region; 14% in the East South Central region; 14% in the West South Central region; 12% in the Pacific region; and 6% in the Mountain region.
As for hospital/facility size, 46% of survey respondents reported 100 beds or less, 37% reported 100 to 349 beds, and 17% reported 350 beds or more.
Respondents ranked their confidence on five topics, and The MarkeTech Group calculated a single composite score. Scores ranged from 0 to 200 and can be interpreted in this way:
- < 50 = extremely low confidence
- 50 to 69 = very low confidence
- 70 to 89 = low confidence
- 90 to 110 = an ambivalent score (neutral)
- 111 to 130 = high confidence
- 131 to 150 = very high confidence
- 150 = extremely high confidence
For the third quarter of 2024, the report found the following:
| MICI Q2 2024 confidence scores by topic | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Topic | Mean score Q2 2024 | Interpretation | Mean score Q3 2024 | Interpretation |
| Will maintain/grow as a profit center | 135 | Very high confidence | 134 | Very high confidence |
| Will grow monthly in diagnostic and interventional radiology | 138 | Very high confidence | 130 | High confidence |
| Will have access to capital for imaging equipment and IT needs | 98 | Neutral | 101 | Neutral |
| Internal operating and staff costs will remain constant | 89 | Low confidence | 86 | Low confidence |
| Will have adequate reimbursement from Medicare for diagnostic and interventional imaging | 82 | Low confidence | 84 | Low confidence |
| Composite score across all areas | 107 | Neutral | 106 | Neutral |
Respondents from all hospital bed sizes reported high confidence that their departments will grow as a profit center and grow monthly, and all regions -- except the Mountain region -- had high confidence in growth in diagnostic/interventional radiology, the group found. But it also noted that all regions have neutral or low confidence in receiving adequate Medicare reimbursement.
Image courtesy of The MarkeTech Group.
The survey also featured a free-response section under which participants commented on the five topics. Regarding study volume increases, respondents said that "[We're] working on getting contracts for interventional radiology that will boost our volume and revenue"; "Volumes are very high and this will be a record year for my facility"; "We are seeing an uptick in volume from 2023 through 2024, [but] limited capital funds indicate that we will most likely continue to do more with less"; and "We are seeing strong growth in many of our departments, such as CT and MRI."
Respondents reported uncertainty about Medicare reimbursement, stating that "Inflation continues to affect our supplies and equipment purchases"; "Still not much capital for growth or even [equipment] replacement"; and "Capital funding is gone. We're in trouble as a healthcare organization."
Finally, regarding operating and staff costs, survey participants noted that "[There's a] better outlook in this market, [but] increased need to improve margin on both sides of the equation"; "Staffing expenses continue to increase"; "Staffing is still a challenge and I may have to pay travel techs to assist in some areas. They are not cheap and cost me more than normal."
The Medical Imaging Confidence Index (MICI) is produced by market research firm The MarkeTech Group using data from its imagePRO panel of radiology administrators and business managers.
