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Multispecialty
February 26, 2025

The New CMS Measure of Excessive Radiation Dose or Inadequate Image Quality in CT: Issues and Ambiguities—Perspectives from an AAPM-Commissioned Panel

Please see the Editorial Comment by Kishore Rajendran discussing this article.
Please see the Editorial Comment by Stephanie M. Leon discussing this article.

Abstract

CMS has adopted a new CT quality measure seeking to discourage excessive radiation dose while preserving image quality. The measure score is expressed as the percentage of qualifying studies that exceed predetermined thresholds indicating inadequate image quality (based on image noise) or excessive radiation dose. The measure has been incorporated into the major CMS quality-based payment programs, impacting hospitals and clinician payments; measure reporting began in January 2025. Following measure development, practitioners identified a spectrum of concerns and impediments, prompting the American Association of Physicists in Medicine to convene a multidisciplinary expert panel to provide further guidance. The panel identified 20 issues and ambiguities in the measure specifications, stemming from metrology concerns, unconventional terminology, and inconsistencies with practice standards or norms, while relating to themes of applicability, categories and metrics, informatics, performance expectations, and meta considerations. In this article, the panel presents these issues and ambiguities with associated recommendations to promote the measure's intentions. These recommendations include greater data access (e.g., to the measure's source data and to reporting elements for audit support) and a more holistic treatment of image quality. The panel ultimately urges a shift toward open-source, open-access, consensus-based, and community-owned strategies to ensure CT quality and safety.

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Information & Authors

Information

Published In

American Journal of Roentgenology
PubMed: 40008834

History

Accepted: February 13, 2025
First published: February 26, 2025

Authors

Affiliations

Jered R. Wells, PhD [email protected]
Radiation Physicist, Duke Health, 2424 Erwin Road, Hock Plaza (Suite 302), Durham, NC 27705
Olav Christianson, MS
Vice President of Clinical Strategy, Imalogix, 1 Town Pl #200, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
Dustin Gress, MS
Senior Advisor for Medical Physics, American College of Radiology, 1892 Preston White Dr, Reston, VA 20191
George Mason University, College of Public Health, Department of Health Administration and Policy, 4400 University Dr, Fairfax, VA 22030 USA
Eric Gingold, PhD
Associate Professor and Director of Diagnostic Radiological Physics, Thomas Jefferson University, 132 S. 10th St., Room 1099H, Philadelphia, PA, 19107
Jurgen Jacobs, MS
CEO, Qaelum NV, Kolonel Begaultlaan 1B, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
Kirsten Boedeker, PhD
Senior Manager of Medical Physics, Canon Medical Systems, 2441 Michelle Drive Tustin, CA 92780
Juan Carlos Ramirez-Giraldo, PhD
Senior Director CT R&D Collaborations; Senior Key Expert, Siemens Healthineers, 40 Liberty Blvd, Malvern, PA 19355
Lifeng Yu, PhD
Professor of Medical Physics, Mayo Clinic, 200 First St. SW, Rochester, MN 55905
Michael McNitt-Gray, PhD
Professor Emeritus of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 924 Westwood Boulevard Suite 650, Los Angeles, California 90024
Ehsan Samei, PhD
Reed and Martha Rice Distinguished Professor of Radiology, Medical Physics, Biomedical Engineering, Physics, and Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke Health and Duke University, 2424 Erwin Road, Hock Plaza (Suite 302), Durham, NC 27705

Notes

Corresponding Author: Jered R Wells, 2424 Erwin Road, Hock Plaza (Suite 302), Durham, NC 27705; 515.249.6197; [email protected]

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