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Home > Medical Professionals > Health Policy and Government Relations > SVS Health Policy Committee Meets with Senators/Staff

SVS Health Policy Committee Meets With Senators/Staff

HPC members met with the following Senators and/or health staff to discuss issues that are vital to vascular surgeons

Illinois Durbin (D) and Obama (D) Maryland Cardin (D) and Mikulski (D) Michigan Levin (D) and Stabenow (D) New Hampshire Gregg (R) and Sununu (R) New Jersey Lautenberg (D) and Menendez (D) New York Clinton (D) and Schumer (D) Oklahoma Coburn, MD (R) and Inhofe (R) Pennsylvania Casey (D) and Specter (R) Texas Cornyn (R) and Hutchinson (R)

On September 25, 2007, 12 members of the SVS Health Policy Committee (HPC) along with President Wayne Johnston, MD and President-Elect Patrick Clagett, MD participated in an all-day retreat held in Washington, DC. View photo gallery. 

The meeting was highlighted by presentations by Representatives John Shimkus (R-IL) and Gene Green (D-TX), both of whom have been very supportive of vascular surgery issues. They were sponsors of the Screening Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Very Efficiently (SAAAVE) Act and sent a joint letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), requesting exemption of vascular studies from Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) cuts. This year, they are co-sponsors of the Access to Medicare Imaging Act, H.R. 1293, and are supportive of multi-year increases for the Medicare physician payment update.

The two issues that were discussed include DRA cuts to non-invasive vascular diagnostic studies and Medicare physician payment updates for 2008 and 2009 and their impact upon physicians and patients. If Senators were co-sponsors of the Access to Medicare Imaging Act, S. 1338, which would delay DRA imaging cuts for two years, they were thanked for their support. However, the House bill also permanently exempts ultrasound from cuts, so SVS members expressed strong support for that version of the bill. Senators were also asked to sign a letter that will be sent to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, Senators Baucus and Grassley, asking them to oppose any additional cuts to imaging.

The House of Representatives has already passed legislation that provides two years of .5 percent positive updates for Medicare physician payment, averting a 9.9 percent decrease included in CMS rulemaking for 2008 and removes the flawed Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula for the basis of determining physician practice costs. SVS members requested that the Senate pass legislation that provides a positive update for at least two years and abolishes the SGR.

HPC members did an excellent job in presenting these issues as constituents to their Senators and/or health staff.       

 Photo Gallery

Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL)	SVS President Wayne Johnston (right), MD and Boulos Toursarkissian, MD (left)
(From left to right) Pam Phillips, SVS Director of Government Relations; Jill Rathbun, SVS Government Relations Consultant; Mo Zilly, Legislative Director for Rep. Shimkus	SVS Vice President Tony Sidawy, MD
(From left to right) Jill Rathbun, Mo Zilly and Sean Roddy, MD	(From left to right) Boulos Toursarkissian, MD, Wayne Johnston, MD and President-Elect Pat Clagett, MD
(From left to right) Pam Phillips, SVS Director of Government Relations; Jill Rathbun, SVS Government Relations Consultant;	Cliff Sales, MD
Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL)	Health Policy Committee Chair Bob Zwolak, MD
Carlo Dall' Olmo, MD and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)	Rep. Gene Green (D-TX)