Although the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) revised downward the multiple procedure payment reduction for imaging interpretation from 50% to 25%, the 25% cut is still unfounded and potentially dangerous, according to a statement released by the American College of Radiology (ACR).
"This extension of the multiple procedure payment reduction to include physicians in the same group practice was not specifically included in the 2012 Medicare Fee Schedule proposed rule," said John Patti, MD, chair of the ACR Board of Chancellors, in a statement. "No efficiencies in care support a funding cut when different physicians in a group practice interpret separate imaging scans for the same patient. There is no scientific support for this action. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should rescind it immediately."
A recently published study proves that any efficiencies in the multiple procedure setting are highly variable and at most total one-fifth of what CMS contends, the ACR said. The multiple procedure reduction will affect vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries such as those suffering from multiple trauma, stroke, or widespread cancer, according to the ACR.
