Imaging turnaround time increased from 2023 to 2024

14 Aug 2026, 21:20 · Medical Xpress

by Lori Solomon

edited by Gaby Clark, reviewed by Alexander Pol

Gaby Clark

Scientific Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process

Alexander Pol

Deputy Editor

Meet our editorial team
Behind our editorial process Editors' notes

This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:

fact-checked

peer-reviewed publication

reputable news agency

proofread

The GIST Add as preferred source

Imaging turnaround times continued to increase across modalities through 2024, according to a study published online Aug. 3 in Journal of the American College of Radiology.

Alexandra R. Drake, M.P.H., from the Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute in Reston, Va., and colleagues updated national outpatient radiologic report turnaround time trends, using data from a 5% sample of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries from 2014 to 2024.

Based on more than 2.87 million technical imaging claims matched with professional claims within 30 days, the researchers found that most claims were for radiography/fluoroscopy (XR; 59.7%), followed by computed tomography (CT; 16.0%), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI; 13.0%) and ultrasound (11.4%). Across the study period, turnaround times were 0.091 days in 2014, followed by a slight increase to 0.104 days in 2021. Thereafter, turnaround times increased each year, reaching 0.251 days in 2024.

Overall, turnaround times increased 177% from 2021 to 2024, with 92.0% of the total increase occurring from 2022 to 2024 (12.3% in 2022, 46.2% in 2023 and 33.4% in 2024). Turnaround times increased from 2023 to 2024 across all imaging modalities (49.1% for ultrasound, 35.4% for XR, 11.6% for CT and 4.5% for MRI).

While most imaging studies were interpreted on the same day (96.7% during the full study period), the share interpreted one or more calendar days after imaging acquisition increased from 1.97% in 2014 to 7.39% in 2024, a 3.8-fold increase. Similarly, the share of imaging studies interpreted seven or more calendar days after acquisition increased from 0.41% in 2014 to 0.87% in 2024, a 2.1-fold increase. While the increase in mean turnaround time from 2023 to 2024 was smaller than the increase from 2022 to 2023, both overall and by modality, turnaround times still increased.

"With radiologists already in short supply, projected shortages in physician supply and rising imaging utilization, these results continue to raise concerns about the ability of the current and future radiologist workforce to meet the growing imaging demand in a timely manner," the authors write.

Publication details

Alexandra R. Drake et al, National Turnaround Time Trends for Medicare Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries: Updated Through 2024, Journal of the American College of Radiology (2026). DOI: 10.1016/j.jacr.2026.06.015

Journal information: Journal of the American College of Radiology

Key medical concepts

Magnetic Resonance ImagingCT Scans

Clinical categories

Diagnostic radiology Who's behind this story?

Gaby Clark

MA in English, copy editor since 2021 with experience in higher education and health content. Dedicated to trustworthy science news. Full profile →

Alexander Pol

PhD nano-engineering from Delft University. Published researcher and journal reviewer. Brings scientific insight to content standards. Full profile →

Citation: Imaging turnaround time increased from 2023 to 2024 (2026, August 14) retrieved 14 August 2026 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-imaging-turnaround.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.