[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 7575]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    CLINICAL LABORATORY FEE SCHEDULE

  Mr. BURR. Madam President, I would like to engage my colleague, the 
distinguished ranking member of the Finance Committee, in a short 
colloquy regarding Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule payment reform 
provisions included in the SGR patch bill, Protecting Access to 
Medicare Act.
  Mr. HATCH. I thank the Senator. I would be happy to engage my 
distinguished colleague in a colloquy. Further, many thanks to him for 
his leadership over the years on this issue.
  Mr. BURR. I thank my colleague and commend his work and the work of 
his staff in the development of this proposal. Reform of the Clinical 
Laboratory Fee Schedule is an important priority. The current system 
does not allow for changes in reimbursement for specific tests and 
instead, cuts to lab reimbursement have been broad reductions to the 
fee schedule overall. This imprecise approach has hampered the ability 
of labs across the country to continue to innovate and improve the 
diagnosis and treatment of disease. The Protecting Access to Medicare 
Act reforms this outdated approach and establishes a system requiring 
laboratories to report market rates to establish Medicare 
reimbursement. It is my understanding that the intent of this provision 
is to ensure that Medicare rates reflect true market rates for 
laboratory services, and as such, that all sectors of the laboratory 
market should be represented in the reporting system, including 
independent laboratories and hospital outreach laboratories that 
receive payment on a fee-for-service basis under the fee schedule. I 
ask my distinguished colleague if this is his understanding of the 
intent of this provision as well.
  Mr. HATCH. The Senator is correct. And I thank my good friend from 
North Carolina for raising this issue. I concur; the intent of the 
provisions of the bill reforming the Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee 
Schedule is to ensure that Medicare rates reflect true market rates, 
and that commercial payment rates to all sectors of the lab market 
should be represented, including independent laboratories and hospital 
outreach laboratories.
  Mr. BURR. I thank the Senator for his insights and his work on reform 
of the Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule.

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