CAA members met with more than 140 legislators earlier this month to share private practice cardiology’s top priorities. Participants at CAA’s seventh fly-in were honored to discuss health care reform initiatives with Representatives Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) and Pete Sessions (R-TX) at CAA’s opening reception.
CAA members urged their elected officials to:

• * Protect the rights of physicians to own assets, including hospitals
• * Keep the equipment utilization assumption rate at 50 percent
• * Use appropriateness criteria, lab accreditation and physician credentialing instead of RBMs to curb inappropriate imaging utilization
• * Be aware of Medicare’s Recovery Audit Contractors (RAC) program, which has numerous negative implications for physician practices.