II 112th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 2347 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES April 25, 2012 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 2012.

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

(i)

In general

The Secretary shall not apply a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services— (I)furnished on or after the date that is 60 days after the date of the enactment of this subparagraph and before January 1, 2013; or (II)furnished in 2013 or a subsequent year unless the reduction is based on the analysis of an expert panel on diagnostic imaging services convened by the Institute of Medicine. (ii)

Request

The Secretary shall request that the Institute of Medicine convene the expert panel described in clause (i)(II) and conduct an analysis of the appropriateness of applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services under this part. (iii)

Requirement for analysis

In preparing the analysis described in clause (ii), the Institute of Medicine shall consult with national medical specialty societies with expertise in the field of diagnostic imaging services. .