The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should cover CT colonography (CTC) for Medicare patients, the American College of Radiology (ACR) wrote in a March 2 letter to President Barack Obama.
President Obama underwent CT colonography, also known as virtual colonoscopy, in a recent annual physical exam. The procedure is less invasive than standard colonoscopy and doesn't require sedation.
"You have yourself publicly addressed the importance of screening for colorectal cancer and have also stated that every American should have access to the same level of care that you receive," wrote Dr. James Thrall, chair of Reston, VA-based ACR's Board of Chancellors. "Medicare coverage of CT colonography would be a tremendous leap forward in the battle against one of the nation's leading cancer killers."
Related Reading
ACG to Obama: Colonoscopy better than virtual exam, March 4, 2010
Obama gets virtual colonoscopy, keeps presidential powers, March 1, 2010
VC CAD application does well alone and as reader aid, February 15, 2010
Editorial: CMS unfairly held VC to higher standard, February 5, 2010
VC screening maintains performance in Medicare population, November 9, 2009
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![Axial images from unenhanced calcium score cardiac CT (left) and curved planar reformation images from CT angiography (right) show that higher long-term exposure to air pollution is associated with greater coronary artery calcium and more obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). Top row: Images in a 68-year-old male patient with higher 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (7.9 μg/m3 for particulate matter measuring ≤2.5 μm in diameter [PM2.5] and 17.4 parts per billion [ppb] for NO2) with extensive CAD (coronary artery calcium score [CACS] >1,000 and obstructive CAD [≥70% diameter stenosis]). Bottom row: Images in a 57-year-old female patient with lower 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (6.3 μg/m3 for PM2.5 and 4.6 ppb for NO2) with no CAD (CACS = 0 and no obstructive stenosis).](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/06/hanneman.r6SMLzkezo.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
