Code Blue – Legislative Action Alert – Oppose HB 2279 and HB 2599 – Call the House Public Health Committee!

May 1st, 2009 § 3

The following legislative action alert was issued by the Texas Chapter – American College of Cardiology, a founding member of the Imaging Alliance.

CODE BLUE – LEGISLATIVE ACTION ALERT

Thank you for calling last week. However we have to call again! The Public Health Committee may vote on HB 2279 and HB 2599 Friday or Saturday.

The radiologists are up to their old tricks again claiming that Cardiologists are fraudulently referring and imaging their own patients, thereby increasing healthcare costs and harming your patients by overexposing them to radiation. We stopped the radiologists in the 2005 and 2007 legislative session, but only because we let our voices be heard!

VOTE NO on HB 2279 and HB 2599 (Click to Read)

Neither one of these bills is about transparency, they are anti-competition bills. These bills are brought forth by the radiologists in their desire to prevent other physicians from treating and imaging their patients. For example, the radiologists would prefer that your Cardiologist not be allowed to perform the imaging of your heart, or your Neurologist not be allowed to perform the imaging of your brain and spinal cord. This is a turf battle within the physician community, and instead of allowing the medical standard of care and market pressure handle this issue, the radiologists would rather come to the Legislature and ask for you to intervene in their turf battle.

As the practice of medicine continues to evolve, and best practices moves more of the imaging into the hands of the physician specialist that examines and treats the patient, radiologists are seeing a downturn in referrals, and in response, the radiologists are seeking legislative means to protect their “economic turf.”

VOTE NO on HB 2279

TCACC is opposed to HB 2279 because:

  1. It would require a physician to “directly supervise” the imaging of the patient, which is not the standard of care in Texas and not how imaging is performed in Texas today.
  2. It would require the publication of component costs of imaging services on imaging billing invoices, which is not done by imaging physicians in Texas today, and
  3. Would create excessive penalties against physicians including revocation and/or suspension of their medical license.


The radiologists are supporting this bill in their continued effort to limit and restrict who may perform imaging services on their patients.  This bill will create an unnecessary burden and expense on non-radiologist physicians who perform imaging on their patients today.

 VOTE NO on HB 2599

This bill is NOT NECESSARY and WILL DECREASE PATIENT ACCESS TO IMAGING!

  1. Every payor of healthcare services – health plans, Medicare, Medicaid – already has the authority by law and rule to deny payment of any claim for imaging services if the payor believes any physician is overutilizing.
  2. Every payor also may and does report any physician who they believe is overutilizing imaging to the Attorney General and/or Texas Medical Board.
  3. The study will not be able to show whether the imaging referral was “appropriate,” and therefore the burden and costs of the reporting will be useless.
  4. The increased costs of reporting, registering with the State, and accreditation of your office, equipment and personnel will increase the costs of imaging.
  5. Increasing the costs of imaging will decrease the number of physicians performing imaging services for Texas patients, and create an access to imaging problem for Texas patients.
  6. CMS and many of the health plans have already indicated that it will adopt accreditation standards for imaging standards.
  7. This bill is a direct attack on the decisions made by the most important partnership in health care: the patient and the physician.

PICK UP THE PHONE AND CALL EACH OF THE

COMMITTEE MEMBERS

“VOTE NO on HB 2279 and HB 2599 because it would decrease your patients’ access to imaging services, increase the costs of imaging services, and create a huge, expensive bureaucracy for the State simply because the radiologists want the State to protect their economic turf.”

Rep. Lois W. Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) (Chair)
(512) 463-0600
(512) 463-5240 (fax)
lois.kolkhorst@house.state.tx.us		 Rep. Susan King (R-Abilene)
(512) 463-0718
(512) 463-0994 (fax)
susan.king@house.state.tx.us
Rep. Elliott Naishtat (D-Austin) (Vice Chair)
(512) 463-0668
(512) 463-8022 (fax)
elliott.naishtat@house.state.tx.us		 Rep. Jodie Laubenberg (R-Parker)
(512) 463-0186
(512) 463-5896 (fax)
jodie.laubenberg@house.state.tx.us
Rep. Garnet Coleman (D-Houston)
(512) 463-0524
(512) 463-1260 (fax)
garnet.coleman@house.state.tx.us		 Rep. Jim McReynolds (D-Lufkin)
(512) 463-0490
(512) 463-9059 (fax)
jim.mcreynolds@house.state.tx.us
Rep. John Davis (R-Houston)
(512) 463-0734
(512) 476-6955 (fax)
john.davis@house.state.tx.us		 Rep. Vicki Truitt (R-Keller)
(512) 463-0690
(512) 477-5770 (fax)
vicki.truitt@house.state.tx.us
Rep. Veronica Gonzales (D-McAllen)
(512) 463-0578
(512) 463-1482 (fax)
veronica.gonzales@house.state.tx.us		 Rep. John Zerwas (R-Richmond)
(512) 463-0657
(512) 236-0713 (fax)
john.zerwas@house.state.tx.us
Rep. Chuck Hopson (D-Jacksonville)
(512) 463-0592
(512) 463-8792 (fax)
chuck.hopson@house.state.tx.us

Please call or email their offices as soon as possible, and ask them to VOTE NO on HB 2279 and HB 2599 and not let it out of Committee.

Please do not hesitate to contact Jaime Capelo, lobbyist for the Texas Chapter of the American College of Cardiologists, directly to get more information. Mr. Capelo can be reached at (512) 469-9898 or at jc@capelolaw.com.


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