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The advocacy efforts of ASHA's Health Care Economics Committee (HCEC) have produced a major change in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) for audiologists. Audiology professional work will now begin to be reflected in the relative value units (RVUs) from which reimbursement rates for audiologists are calculated, including the four cochlear implant programming codes.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the proposed 2008 MPFS on July 2, 2007 that includes professional work for four audiology codes—comprehensive hearing testing, acoustic reflex threshold testing, reflex decay testing, and visual reinforcement audiometry. Audiology services will no longer be seen as technical in the Medicare program, so other codes not included in this rule will be considered by the HCEC for conversion from technical to professional in the near future.
Robert Fifer, the HCEC member who serves as ASHA's advisor to the American Medical Association Relative Value Update Committee (RUC), proposed professional work relative value units (RVUs) earlier this year following an extensive online survey of audiologists. Following negotiations with the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, refined RVUs were presented to the RUC and, subsequently, referred to CMS for incorporation into the MPFS. The proposed 2008 RVUs are consistent with those presented and reflected in the proposed MPFS.
A comprehensive analysis of the proposed 2008 Medicare fee schedule rule will be sent to ASHA members in the near future. For questions or further information, please e-mail reimbursement@asha.org.
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