CMS has announced the opportunity for the public to comment until July 14 on the burdens associated with the in-office ancillary services exception to the Stark Law.
Although the Stark Law generally prohibits self-referrals, the law does contain the IOASE, which allows for the self-referral of advanced diagnostic imaging, radiation, oncology and therapy services.
Physicians who self-refer under the IOASE are required to provide patients a notice disclosing ownership interests in imaging equipment. The physicians are also required to provide patients a list of five alternate imaging providers operating within a 25-mile radius.
The disclosure requirement affects approximately 71,000 private-sector businesses every year, and leads to a collective 125,000 hours in preparation, according to the CMS notice.
Recently, the IOASE has gotten attention from healthcare industry associations. The president's proposed fiscal year 2015 budget limits the IOASE. Beginning in 2015, self-referrals for physical therapy, advanced imaging, radiation therapy and anatomic pathology will no longer be allowed under the Stark Law.
In March, a group of 30 medical organizations sent a letter to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee urging it not to limit the IOASE and to reject the Obama Administration's proposal.
In their letter, the organizations stated "ancillary services are essential tools used on a daily basis by practices seeking to provide comprehensive patient-centered services," and if the administration's proposal were accepted it would "force patients to receive ancillary services in a new and unfamiliar setting, increase inefficiencies, present significant barriers to appropriate screenings and treatments and make healthcare both less accessible and less affordable."
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