Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2013

Bill: 113-s-623
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Cardin, Benjamin L. [D-MD]
Introduced: 2013-03-20
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Medical tests and diagnostic methods

Medicare
Latest action: action_date: 2013-03-20
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Summaries:
action_date: 2013-03-20
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to payments for physician services, to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services until the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register: (1) an analysis of the information used in the final rule to implement the physician fee schedule in 2013 to determine what, if any, efficiences exist within the professional component of imaging services when two or more studies are performed on the same patient on the same day; and (2) detailed information on which activities in the vignettes in such rule were assigned specified reduction percentages, how such percentage reductions for the pre-, intra-, and post-service work were determined and calculated, and the clinical aspects that went into those decisions.</p>

tv_txt: II 113th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 623 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 20, 2013 Mr. Cardin (for himself and Mr. Vitter ) 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 ensure the continued access of Medicare beneficiaries to diagnostic imaging services.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2013 . 2. Medicare payment for imaging services Section 1848(b)(4) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395w–4(b)(4) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (E) Limitation on application of multiple procedure payment reduction The Secretary may not apply a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services furnished on or after 30 days after the date of the enactment of this subparagraph, until the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register the following: (i) An analysis of the information used in the final rule to implement the physician fee schedule under this section in 2013 to determine what, if any, efficiencies exist within the professional component of imaging services when 2 or more studies are performed on the same patient on the same day. (ii) Detailed information on— (I) which activities in the vignettes in such rule were assigned reduction percentages of 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 percent; (II) how such percentage reductions for the pre-, intra-, and post-service work were determined and calculated; and (III) the clinical aspects that went into those decisions. .