The ACC, in concert with the broader cardiovascular
and physician communities, is proactively involved
in addressing myriad critical health care issues.
The Board of Trustees, taking into account the
environment and the potential for influence in
2005, determined that the following targeted areas
would be the focus of the ACC’s efforts in
health care advocacy. The College recognizes that
over time, priorities can shift, and thus will
remain flexible as appropriate and necessary.
Cardiovascular Imaging and Physician
Ownership
Federal and state legislative, regulatory, and
payer initiatives to aggressively ensure that all
physicians who are appropriately trained to provide
imaging services to patients remain able to do so,
and that payers, policymakers, patients and the media
understand the value of high quality imaging procedures
as an integral part of patient care.
Medical Liability Reform
Federal legislative efforts to alleviate escalating
professional liability insurance premiums, primarily
through tort reforms, but could also include insurance
industry reforms.
Medicare Physician Fee Update
Legislative efforts to avert scheduled cuts in
Medicare physician payments and correct underlying
problems with the payment formula; working to secure
technical changes to the payment formula through
the administrative process.
Medicare Payment Policy & Coding
Working to improve Medicare's payment and coding
polices for cardiology services by influencing the
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
as it regularly updates the Medicare fee schedule,
and payment policies, and through work with the AMA's
CPT Editorial Panel and the AMA Relative Update Committee,
ensuring that new cardiovascular techniques are appropriately
recognized for coverage and reimbursement.
Local Payer Advocacy
Working in tandem with chapters/states to respond
to local payer concerns, and to build relationships
with payers, creating opportunities to influence
the formulation of payer policies.
National Medicare Coverage Issues
Influence national Medicare coverage decisions
by identifying issues for consideration and developing
well-supported recommendations; includes ACC participation
in CMS’s Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee
(MCAC) and legislative efforts to ensure Medicare
coverage for cardiovascular screenings, treatments,
and procedures.
Health Information Technology
Cross-organizational efforts to improve the quality
and value of patient care through the promotion of
public and private policies that incentivize physicians
and other providers to adopt health information technology
such as electronic health records and prescribing
systems, and to otherwise influence the environment
for more rapid adoption of such technologies.
Cardiovascular Disease and the Public
Health
An umbrella for legislative issues concerning
cardiovascular disease prevention, public education
and early intervention including combating obesity
and tobacco use.
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