The American College of Radiology (ACR) has initiated a petition urging the Senate to repeal the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula and find a permanent fix for Medicare physician payments, the Reston, VA-based organization said.
The SGR formula determines Medicare physician payment rates, and due to the permanent flaws in the formula, Congress has had to apply a temporary fix on a near-annual basis to ensure physicians are not faced with significant cuts to their Medicare reimbursement.
"The Senate continues to debate temporary fixes, despite repeated assurances that a permanent fix would come as part of healthcare reform," the ACR wrote in a statement. "While the patch is better than payment cuts, we need to make sure senators understand the need for a permanent fix is real, and without it, their constituents ... will potentially face access problems to timely imaging services."
The ACR urges all its members to sign the petition.
Related Reading
Obama signs bill averting 21% Medicare pay cut, April 16, 2010
Senate passes bill to delay SGR cut, April 15, 2010
Bill to delay SGR cut inches forward, April 14, 2010
CMS offers reprieve to SGR rate cuts, March 31, 2010
Medicare SGR cut to go into effect April 1, March 29, 2010
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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)
