Covera Health Expands Radiology Centers of Excellence to Include Prostate MRI, Enhancing Nation's Leading Imaging Quality Program
Significant expansion of Covera's proven COE platform launching in 2026; provider applications now open, with employer and health plan partners preparing for deployment
NEW YORK, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Covera Health, a market leader in radiology quality, today announced a major enhancement to its national Radiology Centers of Excellence (COE) platform with the addition of Prostate Imaging. Launching in Q1 2026, this expansion targeting a high-risk and fast-growing area of diagnostic care, marks a significant evolution in Covera's COE platform. With Prostate Imaging leading the way, Covera is poised to introduce other disease-specific COE offerings throughout 2026 to include breast, abdominal and chest imaging. To prepare for 2026, Covera is currently onboarding COE network practices, reviewing new COE provider applications and working with payors and employers to ensure members are aware of this radiology quality network.
Since 2019, Covera's COE platform has supported millions of covered lives across the United States. First launched in partnership with Walmart, the program is now trusted by large employers and plans across the country – including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM), to ensure health plan and employer members are guided to high quality imaging centers for routine imaging such as MRI, CT, PET and matched with sub-specialized radiologists to interpret their exams.
Covera's COE platform expansion comes at a critical time as an array of healthcare stakeholders are seeking quality gains in radiology image quality and interpretation, all of which can have significant impact on a patient's care journey and outcomes. A landmark study published in The Spine Journal found a 43% miss rate in routine low back MRIs performed on the same patient at 10 different centers within three weeks – highlighting how interpretive accuracy varies widely across settings, even for an exam as common as low back MRI.
In a 2024 analysis reviewed by Milliman, a global consulting and actuarial firm, patients who received imaging at Covera-designated imaging centers through the COE program saw up to 12% lower downstream healthcare costs. These savings are driven by improved diagnostic accuracy –reducing misdiagnosis and unnecessary interventions, as well as unit cost savings through Covera's high value network.
"As we demonstrated – and continue to see – with low back MRI, variation in both image quality and interpretation is a systemic issue," said Ron Vianu, CEO of Covera Health. "Prostate MRI is now a critical decision point in cancer care, yet how and where it's performed continues to vary widely. It's not just about the cost of one exam - it's about how that exam sets off a chain of clinical decisions. Our Prostate COE program is built to address this head-on – ensuring every patient receives high-quality imaging and expert interpretation at the start of their care journey."
Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men. With an estimated 314,000 new cases expected in the U.S. in 2025, it can also be a deadly diagnosis. Recent guidelines now recommend an MRI study be ordered prior to biopsy in many diagnostic workflows. While this shift has clinical benefits, it has also caused a rapid increase in the number of prostate MRIs being performed and resultant surge in prostate biopsies related to equivocal and / or poor-quality MRI results.
While standards for prostate MRI acquisition and interpretation do exist – most notably from the American College of Radiology – the exam remains technically challenging, and adherence to those standards varies significantly across imaging centers. This inconsistency contributes to many unnecessary biopsies – procedures that carry significant clinical risk and cost.
"Prostate MRI is a complicated imaging exam to perform and interpret, and misdirected care is common," said Dr. Matthew Davenport, William Martel Collegiate Professor of Radiology and Co-Director of the Ronald Weiser Center for Prostate Cancer at the University of Michigan. "Improving imaging quality leads to better diagnostic confidence, reduces unnecessary procedures, and ultimately improves patient outcomes. Given the significant variability in imaging quality across the country, initiatives like this are critical to ensuring that every patient receives the highest standard of care."
Covera's Prostate Imaging COE will be automatically activated in early 2026 for employer and health plan partners already using Covera's Radiology Centers of Excellence platform. When a prostate MRI is ordered, patients will be seamlessly directed to a facility that meets rigorous quality standards for both image acquisition and interpretation. Because the enhancement is delivered through Covera's existing infrastructure, no additional contracting or integration is required. This allows employers to immediately extend high-quality imaging protections to a critical clinical area – without disruption or added burden.
Covera is announcing the expansion now to begin onboarding qualified imaging providers and to analyze the patient and practice impact before full scale roll out in 2026. As with other enhancements, the program will plug directly into care navigation and prior authorization workflows – requiring no change to existing patient or provider processes. Covera Health is now accepting applications from imaging providers interested in becoming designated Prostate Imaging Centers of Excellence. For program criteria and participation details, providers may contact prostateCOE@coverahealth.com.
About Covera Health
Covera Health is a healthcare analytics company dedicated to improving diagnostic accuracy in radiology. Through its AI-enabled Centers of Excellence, Protect Her, and Protect Seniors programs, Covera partners with employers, health plans, and providers to drive better outcomes, reduce misdiagnoses, and lower total healthcare costs. The company's Radiology COE platform launched in 2019 and today supports millions of covered lives nationwide.
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SOURCE Covera Health