Echocardiography is not included as advanced imaging which prevented it from falling under the mandatory accreditation definition
Being carved out of this group has had negative implications for echocardiography such as:
- impacting echo lab quality
- the use of unqualified specialists
- not addressing rapid acceleration in the utilization of echo
- the government does not define echo as an “advanced technique.”
ASE advocates a change in the current law with an amendment to the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA) to include echocardiography as an advanced diagnostic imaging service.