The ACC, along with the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), asking the agency to consider the value of MRIs for certain cardiovascular indications as it reconsiders its MRI coverage policies.

The ACC/SCMR letter highlights recent documents that address the management of patients with implantable cardiac devices who would benefit from MRI. "We encourage CMS to rely upon this document to find a coverage framework that allows physicians and their patients to have a conversation to evaluate the risks and benefits of imaging options and decide the best path forward for that patient without worry that their imaging may not be covered because of the patient's implantable device," said ACC President Mary Norine Walsh, MD, FACC, and SCMR President Matthias G. Friedrich, MD, FACC.

CMS must issue a proposed coverage decision by Jan. 12, 2018, but this could come sooner. Stakeholders will again have a 30-day comment period to offer feedback at that time. The current MRI coverage policy was last reviewed in 2011 when CMS added coverage for patients with pacemakers when used according to U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved labeling in an MRI environment or in a clinical study.

Keywords: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S., United States Food and Drug Administration, Medicaid, Medicare, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, Risk Assessment

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