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Policy expert explains why cardiology services in the US are getting more expensive

(October 8, 2026)

U.S. healthcare payment policies are accelerating physician consolidation and driving up the cost of care, according to Rick Snyder, MD, president of HeartPlace and chief physician executive at U.S. Heart and Vascular. He is also the vice president of the American Independent Medical Practice Association (AIMPA) and a former president of the Texas Medical Association. In addition, Snyder has held policy-focused positions with the American College of Cardiology and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions.

In his role with AIMPA, he testified before Congress during this year’s House Energy and Commerce Committee hearings focused on healthcare affordability. He argued that the nation’s healthcare system spends more than any other country of healthcare, but has lower life expectance and poorer outcomes than other Western nations. According to Snyder, this is not due to a lack of spending, but a lack of cost efficiency.

Read the full article at Cardiovascular Business

About the American Independent Medical Practice Association

The American Independent Medical Practice Association is a physician-led national advocacy organization representing more than 2,000 independent medical practices that provide quality, affordable health care for more than 40 million patients each year.

These independent practices are critical access points for health care across the country — at more than 6,000 medical office locations and nearly 700 independent ambulatory surgery centers in 48 states and the District of Columbia.

We advocate on behalf of more than 14,000 physicians and over 25,000 total providers caring for patients in the fields of Primary Care and Internal Medicine as well as the specialties of Cardiology, Dermatology, Gastroenterology, Hematology/Medical Oncology, Nephrology, Neurosurgery, Ophthalmology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Otolaryngology, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Radiation Oncology, Urology, Urgent Care, Vascular Medicine, and Women’s Health.

Media Contact:

Brigit Wolf
brigit@keybridge.biz
202-980-9256

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