Federal Cutbacks Challenge RAS

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Although RAS VP Fred Gaschen says the company is economically strong, he admits that dealing with recent federal cutbacks in Medicaid is a serious challenge. The cutbacks embedded in the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, passed by Congress in 2006, have rocked the imaging industry, causing several centers nationwide to close their doors.    

“Congress decided to try to balance its budget on the backs of medical patients and imaging centers,” says a disgusted Gaschen. “It’s a serious problem, and it could get worse.” Just how serious, Gaschen wouldn’t say, but Dr. Mark Logsdon, chair of RAS’ Radiation Oncology Division, and Dr. J.J. Connors, the company’s co-chair of the Neurointerventionalist Section, also see the reimbursement reduction as the chief problem facing RAS.The federal legislation reduces by at least 10 percent the reimbursements that Medicare traditionally provides for patients requiring imaging services. This follows on the heels of an earlier 10 percent cut implemented by Congress a few years ago.    

The new law, which calls for net reductions in Medicaid of $4.8 billion over the next five years and $26.1 billion over the next 10 years, was backed by President Bush. It will affect millions of poor and elderly Americans. Although the American Medical Association has a strong lobbying presence in Washington, D.C., the possibility of getting the law reversed appears to be small.

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