IAC accreditation: setting the standard of care in diagnostic imaging

Maintaining high standards should be a goal of all imaging facilities. The challenge comes in being able to demonstrate that level of quality--a task that will be essential in the coming months. Accreditation provides imaging facilities with a pathway to demonstrate quality to insurance carriers, patients, and referring physicians. The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act requires that by January 1, 2012, all nonhospital suppliers of the technical component of advanced diagnostic imaging, inclusive of nuclear medicine, magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, and positron emission tomography, obtain accreditation as a condition for reimbursement by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). This article details the multi-modality accreditation programs offered by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission and how imaging centers can achieve accreditation to ensure that they are in compliance with the January 1, 2012, CMS mandate.