Medical & Imaging Labs NAICS 621511, 621512

Jul 9, 2026 - CMS Seeks To Cut $260 Million In Imaging Spending

• The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is seeking to cut over $260 million in spending on medical imaging in 2027 by implementing "site-neutral" payment reforms, according to Radiology Business. The move is part of the 2027 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System proposed rule through which CMS hopes to control "unnecessary" increases in the volume of clinic visit services furnished at certain off-campus hospital departments. CMS hopes to move more care to physician offices, where it can be delivered cheaply, according to Radiology Business. CMS previously did so for certain drug-administration services and is now proposing to expand these reforms to imaging exams delivered without contrast.
• A $5.1 billion revenue decrease is expected for office-based physicians in 2026 due to anticipated lower patient volume caused by the expiration of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidy credits, according to the Robert Wood Johnson foundation. The volume of paid visits has already begun shifting toward either uncompensated care or those visits have been deferred entirely, according to Medscape. Medical and imaging labs relying heavily on referrals may be negatively impacted. Primary care physicians are likely to carry the biggest brunt of the 4.8 million Americans projected to lose health insurance coverage, according to Medscape. "This affects them as well as those doctors who aren’t in concierge or special cash-only practices,” said Carl Law, MD, an anesthesiologist in San Jose, California, and founder of Doctors First Staffing. “They’re either not seeing patients on a regular basis, or they’re seeing them at a late stage of illness."

• Medicare payments to Medicare Advantage plans are expected to increase an average of 3.7%, or over $16 billion in 2025, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Medical and imaging laboratories are likely to benefit from the increase in expenditures. The finalized the Calendar Year 2025 Rate Announcement for Medicare Advantage is projected to result in payments of between $500 and $600 billion in Medicare Advantage payments to private health plans in 2025.
• Medical and imaging laboratory industry employment decreased slightly and average wages for nonsupervisory employees increased significantly during the first two months of 2026, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Medical and imaging labs increased prices slightly during the first three months of 2026, according to the BLS. Medical and imaging laboratory industry revenue increased 4.8% year over year and 1.8% quarter over quarter during the fourth quarter of 2025, according to the US Census Bureau.