Dear Members,

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced late this afternoon (March 12, 2008) that the local coverage determination process (LCD) will be left in place for CCTA. No national coverage determination (NCD) will be adopted at this time.

This is exactly what SCCT requested! SCCT leaders and members worked hard to submit comments, meet with CMS, and provide the agency with needed information. SCCT leaders, members, and advocacy consultants worked as a team to bring this issue to the attention of Congress. 79 Members of the House of Representatives ultimately signed a letter to CMS to express concern about the proposed NCD. In addition, almost a dozen U.S. Senators wrote to CMS with their concerns. This is a direct result of our active grassroots involvement!

The memo is available here.

Thanks again to all SCCT members for their hard work and input into this process. CMS should be commended for reconsidering this policy and doing the right thing for our patients.

Sincerely,

Michael Poon, MD, President
Daniel S. Berman, MD, President Elect
SCCT Advocacy Committee

Message from Daniel Berman, MD, Chair, Corporate Relations Committee