Surge in Users of Virtual Colonoscopy

Despite huge differences in the reimbursement of virtual colonoscopy, its use has gone up three times.

Reimbursement claims for diagnostic VC scans went up from 3,660 to 10,802 between 2005 and 2008, according to a recent paper published in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

Computed tomography colonography also witnessed a rise in denial rates. Nearly 70% of the claims in 2005 were rejected.

"Although a reduction in national denial rates from 70 percent to 43 percent reflects considerable early progress, when contrasted with denial rates of just 4 percent for established technologies such as abdominal CT, opportunities clearly exist for further improvements in patient access through ongoing expansion of coverage," wrote the researchers.



Source: Medindia