FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 18, 2001

SCHUMER: LACK OF ACCESS TO MAMMOGRAMS PUTS THOUSANDS OF NEW YORK CITY AND LONG ISLAND WOMEN AT RISK BY FORCING THEM TO WAIT MONTHS FOR SCREENINGS

Schumer Cosponsors New Legislation To Increase Mammography Reimbursement Rates To Increase Accessibility, Decrease Waits and Attract More Doctors to the Field

Standing with patients and doctors from the NYU Breast Imaging Center, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today outlined new legislation to address the long waits faced by thousands of New York City and Long Island women seeking mammographies.

Currently,

Medicare reimbursement rates for mammographies are well below the average cost of performing them (current rates are just under $70, compared to average costs in New York City of $120 to $140), causing many centers to stop offering screenings and leading to extremely long waits at the centers that do. The low rates and decreasing number of clinics who offer mammograms have also deterred new doctors from pursuing careers in radiology, creating a shortage of qualified doctors in the field.

The legislation, which Schumer is co-sponsoring with Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), the bill's primary sponsor, would significantly raise Medicare reimbursement rates so that rates accurately reflect the cost of the procedure in New York, help struggling radiology centers remain open, and increase the number of qualified technicians who perform breast cancer screenings.

Waiting periods for mammographies have increased at over 50% of clinics nationwide over the last two years, and while doctors recommend that women should have to wait no longer tha n two weeks for a screening, women across New York City and Long Island can find themselves waiting up to four months. In 1998, women seeking a screening mammography - the first test to detect breast cancer - had to wait only two weeks at New York City's leading medical centers, but can expect to wait two months at NY Presbyterian Hospital ; three months at Mount Sinai Medical Center; two months at Memorial-Sloan Kettering; three months at NYU's Breast Imaging Center; two months at St. Vincent's Hospital and Medical Center; and two months at Bloch, Schaffer, Sheinhold, Strasman, and Thompson, MD.

Since early detection holds the key to treating the disease effectively and since routine mammograms reduce the risk of dying from breast cancer by 40%, the wait times are putting millions of women across the country at risk - especially since even delaying a diagnosis often results in tumors being detected at less treatable stages .

"Thousands of women across New York City and Long Island are forced to wait months for mammographies because there aren't enough radiology centers that can afford to screen them," said Schumer. "Senator Harkin and I are working on a bill that raises reimbursement rates, which would keep mammography centers open and provide incentives to attract the next generation of radiologists.We must push this bill through Congress and get it to the President's desk immediately, because when it comes to treating breast cancer, every day counts."

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer affecting women in the United States, with over 200,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Annual screenings are the most effective way to detect breast cancer, but Medicare reimbursement rates for screenings lag far behind the actual cost of the procedure. Current reimbursement rates in New York are $69.23, while the average screening costs around $100 in New York State and costs, on average, between $120-$140 in New York City. The average increase in the Medicare rate - 1.5% per year between 1997 and 2000 - has lagged far behind the medical inflation rate. Moreover, since other government insurance programs and private insurers base their reimbursement rates on Medicare, the low Medicare rates create a ripple effect which lead mammogram clinics to receive insufficient reimbursement from private and government insurers alike.

The widening gulf between reimbursement rates and the actual cost of the procedure has led 247 clinics to close their doors nationwide since September 1999, left many others in danger of closing and forced others to drop major insurance providers. In New York City, East River Imaging Associates announced in January that it could not afford to remain open, leaving the 20,000 women it screens every year scrambling for coverage. NYU's Medical Center was also forced to close one of its two mammography clinics in 1999 for financial reasons. In addition, the low rates have also made it difficult for mammograhy centers to retain radiologists and has served as a disincentive for medical students to pursue careers in radiology.

Schumer will join Senator Harkin in introducing legislation in the Senate in the next few weeks to improve access to mammograms. The bill would:

1. Increase Medicare reimbursement rates for mammograms from the current rate of $69.23 to rates that equal or exceed the actual national cost. In some areas of New York City, rates could be increased by as much as $30 per screening.
2. Increase Medicare Graduate Medical Education payments to provide incentives for medical students to pursue careers in radiology and provide new training grants for radiologic technicians.
3. Instruct the General Accounting Office to study Medicare's reimbursement rate structure for gender- specific procedures to investigate whether rates are equitable across gender lines.

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