The push for healthcare to be digitally transformed and paper-free means having access to electronic medical records anytime/anywhere. This effort amplified, has left many cardiology departments struggling to catch up. According to the Administration on Aging people 65+ represented 12.4 percent of the population in the year 2000, but are expected to grow to be 19 percent of the population by 2030. The increase in longevity-on top of advances in medications, less invasive treatments and diagnostic testing will greatly increase demand for cardiology.

Physicians have used radiation in medicine for more than a century. The use of radiation in diagnostic imaging, including computed tomography (CT), fluoroscopy, angiography, mammography, computed radiography (CR) and digital radiography (DR), as well as in nuclear medicine, has aided greatly in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other diseases.

Expanded use of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is seeing more patients with acute coronary syndromes treated more quickly, according to the latest National Audit of PCI (covering 2012).

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released findings on a number of its initiatives to reform the healthcare delivery system. These include interim financial results for select Medicare accountable care organization (ACO) initiatives, an in-depth savings analysis for Pioneer ACOs, results from the physician group practice demonstration, and expanded participation in the bundled payments for care improvement initiative. Savings from both the Medicare ACOs and Pioneer ACOs exceed $380 million.