A Radiologist's Guide to the Federal Election of 2012: What You Should Know Before You Go Into the Booth

The results of the federal election of 2012 will likely have very substantial impacts on the practice of radiology. Health care reform is likely to continue under the administration of either of the two major candidates, albeit in very different ways. In particular, radiologists should be aware of the candidates' positions on how their plans will affect key issues facing radiology. There are many issues at stake. These include reimbursement, multiple-procedure discounting, utilization rates, bundled care, accountable care organizations and capitation, justification of procedures, tort reform, and taxation policies. The election coincides with a period of fiscal crisis in the US government coupled with a relatively weak economic recovery in the United States and an ongoing fiscal and economic crisis in Europe. The pressures in the United States are further magnified by a profound demographic shift as the baby boom generation retires in record numbers, increasing the payment requirement on the major entitlement programs, Medicare and Social Security. These forces are heightening the pressures at the federal level for substantial change in how health care is regulated and reimbursed. The author reviews the positions of the major candidates and their parties on health care and evaluates election outcome scenarios that radiologists and their groups should plan for over the period from 2013 to 2017.