Advocacy for S. 2347 is Working, Says ACR

In July, the total number of co-sponsors for Senate bill number 2347, the Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act, doubled from six to 12, the ACR stated today. With CMS’s proposed 2013 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) bringing back the 25% multiple procedure payment reduction (MPPR) on the professional component (PC) of advanced diagnostic imaging services, the pressure is on to block the cuts legislatively because CMS will likely not back down on them this year like they did last year, Cindy Moran, assistant executive director of government relations for the ACR told ImagingBiz last month. The bills principal sponsors, senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and David Vitter (R-LA), have circulated a letter urging their colleagues to co-sponsor S. 2347. Together with direct ACR lobbying and grassroots advocacy from ACR members, the letter has brought in Senators John Kerry (D-MA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Richard Burr (R-NC), who serve on the powerful Senate Finance Committee, which has direct jurisdiction over S. 2347.   S. 2347 is the companion bill for the House’s Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act (H.R. 3269), which currently has 261 co-sponsors. Both the House and Senate must approve of bills to block the 25% MPPR on the PC in order for such legislation to be sent to the President, the last step in being signed into law. The website govtrack.us currently gives the House bill a 5% chance of passing and the Senate bill a 3% chance of passing. The ACR is urging its members to contact their senators and ask them to sign onto S. 2347.