Here are four things to know about the payment:
- Radioisotopes, specifically Mo-99 and Tc-99m, are crucial for the detection of disease in medical imaging and radiopharmaceuticals. Tc‑99m and its source material, Mo-99, are historically derived from reactors outside the U.S.
- A $10-per-dose add-on payment for radiopharmaceuticals that use Tc-99m derived from domestically produced Mo-99 will begin Jan. 1, 2026.
- CMS said paying providers that use domestically produced Tc-99m radiopharmaceuticals will offset anticipated higher costs.
- “These artificially low, foreign government-subsidized prices have created a disincentive for domestic investments in Mo-99 production infrastructure and a barrier to entry for new producers,” CMS said in a Nov. 1 news release.
