MedPAC > Recommendations

Commission Recommendations

MedPAC makes recommendations to the Congress and to the Secretary of Health and Human Services on issues affecting the administration of the Medicare program. With its recommendations, the Commission strives to improve the delivery of care, while ensuring financial stability and maximizing value for the program. After extensive analysis and evaluation, our recommendations are discussed and voted on by Commissioners in our public meetings. Recommendations are typically published in two main reports, released in March and June of each year.

Recommendations	Topic(s)	Date	Appeared In
Issues in physician payment policy (B) The Secretary should improve Medicare’s coding edits that detect unbundled diagnostic imaging services and reduce the technical component payment for multiple imaging services performed on contiguous body parts.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 3
Issues in physician payment policy (C) The Congress should direct the Secretary to set standards for physicians who bill Medicare for interpreting diagnostic imaging studies. The Secretary should select private organizations to administer the standards.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 3
Issues in physician payment policy (D) The Congress should direct the Secretary to set standards for all providers who bill Medicare for performing diagnostic imaging studies. The Secretary should select private organizations to administer the standards.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 3
Issues in physician payment policy (E) The Secretary should include nuclear medicine and PET procedures as designated health services under the Ethics in Patient Referrals Act.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 3
Issues in physician payment policy (F) The Secretary should expand the definition of physician ownership in the Ethics in Patient Referrals Act to include interests in an entity that derives a substantial proportion of its revenue from a provider of designated health services.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 3
Physician services The Congress should update payments for physician services by the projected change in input prices less 0.8 percent in 2006.	Physicians and other health professionals	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 2B
Strategies to improve care: Pay for performance and information technology (E) The Congress should establish a quality incentive payment policy for physicians in Medicare.	Delivery system reforms Physicians and other health professionals Quality	March 2005	March 2005 - Chapter 4
Outpatient dialysis services (2) The Congress should establish a quality incentive payment policy for physicians and facilities providing outpatient dialysis services.	Ambulatory care settings Delivery system reforms Physicians and other health professionals	February 2004	March 2004 - Chapter 3E
Physician services The Congress should update payments for physician services by the projected change in input prices, less an adjustment for productivity growth of 0.9 percent, in 2005	Physicians and other health professionals	February 2004	March 2004 - Chapter 2B
Physician services The Congress should update payments for physician services by the projected change in input prices, less an adjustment for productivity growth of 0.9 percent, for 2004.	Physicians and other health professionals	February 2003	March 2003 - Chapter 2B

GAO makes MedPAC commissioner appointments: