The Medical Imaging and Technology Alliance (MITA) is offering recommendations for how imaging can best prepare for future pandemics.
In a letter sent June 30 to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, MITA suggested the following actions:
- Collect medical imaging resources and equipment in the Strategic National Stockpile.
- Streamline U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements for medical imaging devices.
- Set protocols for maintaining continuity of nonpandemic care during a crisis.
- Establish metrics for assessing healthcare capacity and need.
- Fund research that explores the value of imaging in health crises.
"As this letter makes clear, we support taking critical steps to prepare our country for the future," executive director Patrick Hope said in a statement released by the alliance. "We look forward to working with policymakers to bolster the imaging sector's preparedness for any future public health crisis."
