ACR preliminarily pleased with 2017 physician fee schedule
Last Thursday, CMS proposed changes in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). The American College of Radiology quickly said it would be reviewing the details in the coming weeks and—in advance of that activity as well as of the September 6 comment deadline—noted its overall approval of the proposed rule as released.
“CMS has recognized the value provided by radiologists in providing mammography services through an increase in the physician work relative value units (RVUs) for diagnostic mammography and maintaining the current value for screening mammography,” ACR wrote in a summary of the proposal’s ramifications for radiology.
ACR notes that CMS is estimating a calendar year 2017 conversion factor of $35.7551—a slight decrease from the current conversion factor of $35.8043.
“CMS estimates an overall impact of the MPFS proposed changes to radiology to be a 1 percent decrease, while interventional radiology would see an aggregate decrease of 7 percent and radiation oncology and nuclear medicine a 0 percent change if the provisions within the proposed rule are finalized,” the ACR summary reports.
Further conveying its on-board status with the proposed rule, ACR says its physicians and staff “held numerous conference calls and meetings with CMS on the topic of appropriate use criteria (AUC)/clinical decision support (CDS), including a comprehensive stakeholder meeting in January,” adding that the consensus seems to be that CMS “is considering input from all stakeholders.”
Click here for a CMS fact sheet and here for ACR’s preliminary summary.
Dave P. has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for more than 30 years, frequently concentrating on hospitals, healthcare technology and Catholic communications. He has also specialized in fundraising communications, ghostwriting for CEOs of local, national and global charities, nonprofits and foundations.