Title: Medicare Access to Radiology Care Act of 2017
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Medicare Access to Radiology Care Act of 2017
This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise physician supervision requirements under the Medicare program for radiology services performed by advanced level radiographers. Specifically, with respect to a state that has established such requirements for those services, the bill aligns Medicare's requirements with state requirements.
An "advanced level radiographer" is a radiographer who has obtained specified certification from either the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists or the Certification Board for Radiology Practitioner Assistants.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 769 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 769

  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to align physician 
   supervision requirements under the Medicare program for radiology 
     services performed by advanced level radiographers with State 
                             requirements.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 29, 2017

Mr. Boozman (for himself and Mr. Casey) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to align physician 
   supervision requirements under the Medicare program for radiology 
     services performed by advanced level radiographers with State 
                             requirements.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Medicare Access to Radiology Care 
Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. ALIGNING PHYSICIAN SUPERVISION REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE MEDICARE 
              PROGRAM FOR RADIOLOGY SERVICES PERFORMED BY ADVANCED 
              LEVEL RADIOGRAPHERS WITH STATE REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1834(b) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395m(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (6), by inserting ``, subject to paragraph 
        (7),'' after ``includes radiology services''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(7) Treatment of services performed by advanced level 
        radiographers.--For purposes of paragraph (6), in the case of 
        radiology services performed by an advanced level radiographer 
        (as defined in section 1861(jjj)) in a State that has 
        established standards for the direction or supervision by a 
        physician of such a radiographer performing such services, such 
        services shall be treated as performed under the direction or 
        supervision of a physician if such services are performed under 
        the direction or supervision of a physician to the extent 
        required under such State law.''.
    (b) Advanced Level Radiographer Defined.--Section 1861 of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection:

                     ``Advanced Level Radiographer

    ``(jjj) The term `advanced level radiographer' means a radiographer 
who is certified by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists 
as a registered radiologist assistant or by the Certification Board for 
Radiology Practitioner Assistants as a radiology practitioner assistant 
to perform radiology services under the supervision of a 
radiologist.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to services performed on or after the date that is 
60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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