Reimbursement and Practice Management
On April 14, 2015, Congress repealed the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) permanently eliminates SGR and provides positive annual payment updates lasting through 2019. Since MACRA significantly changes the way Medicare pays physicians, we have developed a MACRA Resource Page to help educate neurosurgeons about this topic. In addition to our efforts on MACRA, the Coding and Reimbursement Committee is actively involved in bringing or reviewing new or revised CPT codes, is a strong advocate for appropriate valuation of neurosurgical services and neurosurgery’s Rapid Response Team works tirelessly to ensure that third party payors cover necessary neurosurgical services.
Key Resources
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PRIOR AUTHORIZATION BACKGROUND Prior authorization is a cumbersome process that requires physicians to obtain pre-approval for medicaltreatments or tests before rendering care to their patients. The process for obtaining this […]
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Americans continue to struggle with rising health care costs, including high deductibles and other out-ofpocket expenses. As such, a balanced solution for cost-sharing between patients, physicians and healthplans is a […]
Letters
Subject: Keep Physicians Serving Patients Act of 2019 Dear Representative Finkenauer, On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons (CNS), representing more than […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Lower Health Care Costs Act Dear Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Murray, The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons(CNS), representing more than 4,000 […]
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PRIOR AUTHORIZATION SURVEYTOP-LINE RESULTS Patient Access to Care Has Been Impacted Prior Authorization Burden Has Increased … Read full article here
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Statement for the Recordon behalf of theAmerican Association of Neurological Surgeonsand theCongress of Neurological Surgeonsbefore theWays and Means Subcommittee on HealthU.S. House of Representativeson the topic ofProtecting Patients from Surprise […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Support for Coverage for Magnetic Resonance Image Guided High IntensityFocused Ultrasound (MRgFUS) for Essential Tremor (ET) Dear Drs. Patterson and Whites: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act Dear Representative DelBene, On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons (CNS), we are pleased […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act Dear Dr. Marshall, On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons (CNS), we are pleased […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act Dear Dr. Bera, On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons (CNS), we are pleased […]
Letters
SUBJECT: Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act Dear Representative Kelly, On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons (CNS), we are pleased […]
Letters
Dear Leader McConnell, Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi and Leader McCarthy: Since the enactment of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), the undersignedorganizations have worked closely with both Congress […]
Letters
SUBJECT: The No Surprises Act Discussion Draft Comments Dear Chairman Pallone and Ranking Member Walden, The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons(CNS), representing more […]
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Protecting People From Surprise Medical Bills ActCongressman Ruiz, M.D. & Congressman Roe, M.D.Section by Section Section 1: Title“Protecting People From Surprise Medical Bills Act” Section 2: Prohibition on Surprise Balance […]
Letters
SUBJECT: STOP Surprise Medical Bills Act Dear Senators Cassidy, Bennet, Young, Hassan, Murkowski and Carper: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress ofNeurological Surgeons […]
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The Alliance of Specialty Medicine (“Alliance”) is a coalition of fifteen medical specialtysocieties representing more than 100,000 physicians and surgeons from specialty andsubspecialty societies dedicated to the development of sound […]
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Dear Leader McConnell, Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi and Leader McCarthy, The undersigned organizations appreciate the need to address the issue of surprise billing. Withmemberships dedicated to providing safe and effective […]
Letters
Published: April 29, 2019
Dear Administrator Verma: The undersigned organizations constitute the overwhelming majority of health care professionalswho order or furnish advanced diagnostic imaging tests. While committed to consultation ofappropriate use criteria (AUC) for […]
Letters
Published: April 23, 2019
Dear Chairman Neal, Ranking Member Brady, Chairman Pallone, and Ranking Member Walden: The undersigned organizations write to express our strong opposition to H.R. 2143, the “PromotingIntegrity in Medicare Act.” If […]
Letters
SUBJECT: NASS Draft Model Coverage Policy on Interspinous Fixation with Fusion Dear Dr. Wang: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), the Congress of NeurologicalSurgeons (CNS) and […]
Letters
SUBJECT: NASS Draft Model Coverage Policy on Lumbar Discectomy Dear Dr. Wang: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), the Congress of NeurologicalSurgeons (CNS) and the AANS/CNS […]
Letters
Published: March 27, 2019
Subject: Washington State Health Care Authority Proposal for Re-review of VagusNerve Stimulation (VNS) for Epilepsy and Depression Dear Mr. Morse: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), […]
Letters
Published: February 20, 2019
Subject: Washington State Health Care Authority Non-coverage for Sacroiliac JointFusion Surgery Dear Mr. Morse: On behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), the Congress of NeurologicalSurgeons (CNS), the […]
Letters
Published: February 19, 2019
Dear Administrator Verma: The undersigned organizations are writing to urge the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services(CMS) to provide guidance to Medicare Advantage (MA) plans on prior authorization (PA)processes through […]
Letters
Published: February 7, 2019
Dear Representative Roe: Thank you for the letter regarding the use of prior authorization in Medicare Advantage (MA).appreciate hearing your views on this issue. Medicare law and regulations allow MA […]
