The Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (PAMA) finally goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2020, meaning advanced imaging orders must be placed using clinical decision support for Medicare to provide a full reimbursement. A new report from NPR and Kaiser Health News (KHN) examined the legislation’s history, exploring the numerous delays and asking how they may be impacting patient care.
Though the legislation goes into effect in 2020, that initial year is a testing period for providers as they adjust to the significant change. And as the analysis explained, “CMS also said it won't decide until 2022 or 2023 when exactly physician penalties will begin.”
“These delays mean that many more inappropriate imaging procedures will be performed, wasting financial resources and subjecting patients to services they do not need,” Gary Young, director of the Northeastern University Center for Health Policy and Healthcare Research in Boston, said in the article. “If this program were implemented stringently, you would certainly reduce inappropriate imaging to some degree.”
The report from NPR and KHN also explored how CMS views the issue of image utilization and the American College of Radiology’s role in helping the imaging industry adapt to the legislation. Click below to read the full article.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.