Senators Sponsor Bill to Forestall Cuts in Imaging Reimbursement

A bipartisan group of nearly 70 senators is cosponsoring a bill that calls for a 2-year hold on changes in Medicare reimbursement for medical imaging that are projected to result in deep cuts. The reductions will limit payment for imaging services in a physician’s office or imaging center to no more than that of a hospital outpatient department. This change is projected to reduce reimbursement rates for physician offices or imaging centers by 30% to 50%. The change in payment is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2007.

The bill, S. 3795 (Access to Medicare Imaging Act), also requests that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) study the use of such imaging services by Medicare beneficiaries. The House already had introduced a similar bill. The Medicare savings projected to result from the change in payment account for more than one-third of the total Medicare savings in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2006.