Bipartisan Letter Led by Senators Lincoln and Burr Asks Federal Policymakers to Protect Critical Radiation Care From Medicare Funding Cuts Intended for Diagnostic Imaging
Cancer physicians and cancer care advocates applauded a bipartisan letter led by Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) sent to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius yesterday urging that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) spare life-saving radiation oncology services from a major Medicare funding cut proposed for diagnostic imaging services. The 32 Senators signing the letter stated their unanimous concern that these funding cuts could force freestanding and community-based cancer centers to shut down, thereby limiting access to care for seniors - particularly in rural areas.
"As a physician who treats thousands of cancer patients, I am quite shocked by these proposed plans to implement drastic cuts for radiation therapy services," said Bernard W. Taylor, M.D., a radiation oncologist at Texas Oncology-Longview Cancer Center in Longview, Texas, and Chairman of US Oncology's Reimbursement and Public Policy Committee. "Cuts of this level will most certainly cause many free-standing cancer centers to close, which will lead to longer wait times for patients and less time spent with their doctors. On behalf of the cancer community, we applaud our Senators' bipartisan action in this letter to educate policymakers on the dire impact that this misapplied policy will have on vulnerable cancer patients' access to care."
At issue is a 19 percent funding cut in Medicare reimbursement to the radiation oncology specialty contained within the CY 2010 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule, equating to cuts of up to 44 percent for certain radiation therapy treatments. Of particular concern in the rule is a proposed policy that raises the utilization rate for certain medical equipment from 50 to 90 percent.
This CMS proposed policy appears to have been derived from a recent Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) report. The proposed rule misses a critical distinction made by MedPAC in recent comments and highlighted in the Senators' letter: radiation therapy is therapeutic and should not be included in policy aimed at concerns about volume growth in diagnostic imaging.
The September 23 Senate letter submitted to Secretary Sebelius asked CMS to exempt radiation therapy equipment from the proposed utilization rate assumption increase, stating: