Medicare Nixes "Virtual Colonoscopies"

(CBS)  Medicare announced Tuesday it will not pay for so-called "virtual colonoscopies."

In 2006, 200,000 of them were performed in the United States. Overall, Americans have more than 14 million colonoscopies every year, and doctors agree doing more would save thousands of lives.

CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook reports the government's rejection of the latest high-tech approach was a big disappointment to many advocates of colon cancer prevention.

Dr. Otis W. Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society says, "The American Cancer Society believes that virtual colonoscopy, or CT colonography, ought to be available as one of several options for colon cancer screening."

In a traditional colonoscopy, a fiberoptic instrument is used to examine the lining of the colon and remove polyps. In virtual colonoscopy, images of the colon are generated by a noninvasive body scan. Both have a similar detection rate for significant polyps; traditional colonoscopy usually costs at least twice as much.

The government maintains that, "The evidence is inadequate to conclude that CT colonography is an appropriate colorectal cancer screening test."

One concern is that costs would increase because polyps found by virtual colonoscopy require traditional colonoscopy to remove them. Advocates say reaching more people is worth the added expense.

"Right now about 40 percent of people over the age of 50 are getting any kind of screening for colon cancer," Brawley says. "We believe if virtual colonoscopy were more available, more people would be screened and more lives would be saved."




©2009 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved

[sjc_1]

ALL of health care costs WAY too much. We know this. We have THE most expensive but not the best health care in the world. It is time ALL the health care providers take a pay cut and it is way past the time that we have National Health Insurance.

[mutnauq4842]

What, as compared to cardiologists, radiologists, and orthopedic surgeons? Nurses make too much? Now THAT opinion is out of whack!
Posted by tmn at 6:11 PM : May 12, 2009

RNs need a minimum of a 2 yr associate degree.

[mutnauq4842]

A Future of the Brave
Posted by searingtruth at 10:48 PM : May 12, 2009

You are so bogus and full of it.

[mutnauq4842]

CMS feels there is no need for virtual colonoscopies because they have an advantage the common senior citizen does not-CMS has their head up their azz.

[ColonCancerAlliance]

The Colon Cancer Alliance is extremely disappointed that the Center for Medicaid Services (CMS) opted to deny coverage for CT Colonography (CTC), commonly known as virtual colonoscopy. CTC has proven to be a very effective method of early detection and prevention of colon cancer. This decision now leaves millions of older Americans exposed to a higher risk of colon cancer. It also exacerbates an unequal standard of care between Medicare beneficiaries, who do not have the choice to undergo a virtual colonoscopy, and those with private insurance who do. America?s seniors deserve better. They deserve the same access to colorectal screening tools as Americans fortunate enough to have private health insurance.

?About 150,000 Americans are diagnosed with colorectal cancer every year, the majority of them Medicare aged. It?s the third highest cause of cancer in the country and the second leading cause of cancer deaths. Caught early, it has cure rates of more than 90 percent and through proper screening can be avoided entirely.

Making virtual colonoscopy more easily available as an alternative to standard colonoscopy would be an important tool that ultimately motivates more Americans 50-plus (45 in certain minorities) to undergo a screening they might otherwise skip. Improved access to virtual colonoscopy has the potential to increase screening rates enough to save both lives and money.

It?s the right of an American senior to screen for colon cancer using any form of medically accepted, effective procedure they and their doctor choose. This is especially true in the case of virtual colonoscopy, where it?s cheaper, less invasive and equally medically effective as standard colonoscopy. By denying coverage for virtual colonoscopy, CMS is sending the signal that increased screening amongst the Medicare beneficiary population is unimportant. The Colon Cancer Alliance and its members strongly disagree with this sentiment. Medicare beneficiaries deserve access to virtual colonoscopies. We urge CMS to immediately re-open a coverage decision so it can consider additional data pertaining to the age 65 and above population.

Andrew Spiegel
Chief Executive Officer
Colon Cancer Alliance
[phone] office
www.ccalliance.org

[whitemale08]

WELCOME TO THE OBAMA AUSTERITY HEALTH PLAN TO PAY FOR BAIL OUTS TO GOLDMAN SUCKS AND WARREN BUFFET WHO PRACTICLY OWNS ALL INSURANCE CO.

Folks, I tried to WARN you that all of us will pay for these stupid bank bail outs with forced austerity.

There is more austerity to come folks because the stress-tests was the green light to continue all bailouts.

[veils-2009]

Health Industry lobbyists have infected this non-invasive practice with the guise of practicality, cloaking profitability.

The big scare here is:
Once this technology get rooted into normal procedure for colonoscopy, it will quickly migrate into other medical practices; from bones to breasts. This procedure is carried out by technicians instead of doctors reducing the overall costs of a diagnosis and gaining almost 100X improvement in tissue image resolution compared to current "an al-log" methods.

[I_am_me1953]

Ummm, last time I heard, Medicare and Medicaid are GOVERNMENT run health care programs....what does an insurance company have to do with the GOVERNMENT telling you
Posted by AmericaGetsChumpChange at 7:20 AM : May 13, 2009
____________________________

Because what the govt allows will soon be standard for BCBS.

[kozynferg]

For those screaming that this is what will happen with "socialized Medicine", most private insurance companies, Blue Cross/Blue Shield for instance, refuse to pay for virtual colonoscopies. This even when complications mean the patient can not have a regular colonoscapy.

[platteman]

Welcome to Obambi care.!!!!! We are now on the road to socialized medicine. Glad all you left wing nut jobs love the chosen one who is now telling banks how to pay people, letting the unions own the car companies, and soon will tell you how much you can drive, what medicines to take and the rest.