The American Society of Nuclear Cardiology recently met with the Louisville, Kentucky, insurer, which shared an openness to reviewing a recent coverage determination. 

Multiple nuclear medicine and cardiology groups are working to oppose potential cuts to myocardial PET scans that were made possible by the CMS 2020 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule, according to a joint statement.

When CMS released the 2020 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule, it included revisions that could lead to technical component payment reductions of up to 80% for certain services related to myocardial PET scans.

The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) and the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) submitted a letter to BlueCross BlueShield (BCBS) of Tennessee urging an expansion of cardiac PET coverage.

You asked and the experts answered. During the webinar Q&A, we ran out of time to answer all the questions so we reconvened the expert panel with Drs. Dilsizian, Bateman, Thompson and Bering and they answered them ALL! Check out the great insight for programs wanting to know more about cardiac PET, strategies on reimbursement and patient selection, ways to build physician awareness, timing for new agents on the horizon, the challenge of PET/MR and cardiac PET's role in retasking the cath lab and even serving as gatekeeper. Click on the questions and take a look!

PET with 11C-PIB provides a noninvasive method for visualizing amyloid deposits in the heart, according to a study published in the February issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine. The researchers suggest that 11C-PIB eventually may be used in the clinical setting as both a diagnostic tool and a treatment follow-up method.