Dear Affiliate Leaders:
Recently the Medicare Access to Radiology Care Act, H.R. 3657 and S. 2641, was introduced in Congress. To assist with gaining support and cosponsors for the bills, ASRT asks that affiliate societies create letters of support that the MARCA lobbying team can distribute on Capitol Hill while visiting with lawmakers from your state.
To create the letters, please customize the highlighted areas in this support letter template with your affiliate society’s information. There is one template to personalize for federal representatives and one to personalize for federal senators in your state. We ask that you print the completed letter on your society’s letterhead and return it to ASRT by emailing governmentrelations@asrt.org by September 27.
In addition to writing letters of support, you can promote more activism by posting information on your affiliate website or social media platforms by asking your webmaster to use the codes provided in this document so the MARCA calls to action can be viewed easily. Instructions are provided in the document.
Please promote MARCA during your meetings. If you are conducting an in-person annual meeting, set up computers at convenient locations so your attendees can quickly send an email to their federal lawmakers. Templates have already been created for ease of use. Simply open your computer to the MARCA Advocacy Action Center page and ask attendees to enter their personal information on the engagement pages.
If you are meeting virtually, please take a few minutes to promote MARCA by showing attendees how to find information about MARCA and take action to save the radiologist assistant profession.
As an affiliate leader, you are the cornerstone of success for getting MARCA enacted. You can play a critical role in protecting this advanced pathway for all radiologic technologists.
These requests will only take a few minutes yet will have a lasting effect. Please don’t delay.
If you have any questions, please let us know.
Thank you for your leadership, your partnership and everything you do to promote and enhance our profession!
Sincerely,
ASRT Government Relations Department
Please note the documents will open in a new browser showing the document near the bottom of that page that you will need to download. If you have any problems opening the documents please contact us at governmentrelations@asrt.org.
URGENT ACTION NEEDED!
Currently, there is legislation in California titled, “AB-1273 Interagency Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship: the Director of Consumer Affairs and the State Public Health Officer”. The JRCERT opposes CA AB1273 as currently drafted, specifically the “earn and learn” concept due to the negative impact it would impose on JRCERT accredited programs and the profession.
The “earn and learn” concept is on the job training (OJT) which allows students to secure a wage while working. JRCERT policy prohibits students from earning wages during clinical hours to guarantee students are not taking the place of qualified staff and are appropriately supervised during their clinical education. Additionally, this prevents the risk of liability to medical facilities due to unqualified individuals performing medical imaging and therapeutic procedures.
This bill would cause the profession to regress back to the antiquated method of educating radiologic science professionals through on the job training. A well-structured educational program that includes a competency-based curriculum assures students have the knowledge and skills for entry-level practitioners.
ISSRT Member,
We are writing to you because of an incident involving a potential email scam utilizing
unauthorized emails and affecting members. Although we are unaware of anything serious other
than an isolated incident, we are providing notice to you and others who could be potentially
affected in the future. There are tools you can use to protect yourself against possible scams,
identity theft or fraud.
What Happened?
We were informed that one of our board members recently received an email from
“president4783@gmail.com” and purportedly from “Cathie Kukec”. The email requested
immediate funds to be wired to “Citibank” in “Waukegan, IL”. Cathie Kukec is a former
president and is currently the Board of Directors Chairwoman. However, the email was not from
her.
To date, the investigation indicates that the email was a scam meant to convince a
member to wire money. Because you are a current or new member whose email may be
available, we are notifying you about this incident so that you will be in a better position to
protect yourself.
Incidentally, we have also been made aware of random emails requesting members send
gift cards. We are not aware of, nor have we been notified of any data breach, and we believe
the above incidents to be isolated. However, you should be aware that ISSRT will never send
you an email asking you to wire money or send gift cards. What Are We Doing?
The matter has been reported and investigated by the police. The organization has also
conducted its own investigation. We believe our members are best protected by disclosure of
this information.
What You Can Do?
To protect yourself from the possibility of a scam, identity theft or fraud, we recommend
you immediately contact ISSRT if you receive any communication requesting money or gift
cards. Report any activity or inquiry you find suspicious to ISSRT.
For More Information
If there is anything else that we can do to assist you, please contact the Executive
Secretary, Tim Cuff, or email him at issrt.execassist@gmail.com.
Thank you.
ISSRT Board
Dear Colleague:
The Medicare Access to Radiology Care Act of 2021 was introduced on June 1 by Representative Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania as H.R. 3657. This bill proposes a law that amends Medicare policy, allowing radiology practices and facilities to receive complete reimbursement for diagnostic imaging procedures performed by RAs, regardless of the setting in which the procedure is performed.
In late 2018, Medicare amended its payment policy to adjust the radiologist supervision levels for radiologist assistants. The ASRT, ARRT, ACR and SRPE are now advocating for the adoption of new statutory language in Medicare to ensure that regardless of the setting in which the radiology service is performed; hospital, critical access hospital, ambulatory surgical center or any other facility setting, that services provided by a radiologist assistant receive complete Medicare reimbursement. By not separating radiologist assistant reimbursement policies into different payment categories by service location, the adoption of MARCA would enable radiologists to devote more focused time to reviewing and interpreting complex medical images or urgent cases, thus increasing patients’ access to care. RAs will be able to work more efficiently, and Medicare patients will receive care from qualified RAs regardless of the facility in which their procedure takes place.
RAs have completed advanced education and clinical competencies and can expertly and safely perform radiologic assessments and certain procedures that traditionally were performed only by radiologists. Without complete Medicare reimbursement for RAs services made to the radiology practices employing RAs, the profession is in peril. As a direct result of Medicare’s current policy, RAs are losing their jobs and are unable to practice to the full extent of their capabilities. Medicare patients are not receiving the full benefit of care provided by a qualified and experienced radiology professional.
All radiologic technologists can help by going to the ASRT’s Advocacy Action Center to learn more about the MARCA bill and send a message to your congressional representative. R.T.s can also monitor activity on the bills and follow up with federal lawmakers regularly.
Sincerely,
Mike Odgren, B.S., R.P.A., R.R.A., R.T.(R)(CT)
President
The Spring 2021 Newsletter for the Illinois State Society of Radiologic Technologists is now available:
Your Chance to Comment
ARRT’s Board of Trustees has recommended changes to some of our governing documents. In addition, this year we are restructuring the documents. Our goal is to make it easier to find information pertinent to certification and registration by decreasing duplicated information. Currently similar information appears in more than one governing document.
Because the documents apply to all Registered Technologists (R.T.s), it’s important for you to review the changes and let us know what you think.
First, review the proposed changes and rationale. Then, complete this survey. NOTE: the survey doesn’t include explanations for the changes.
Comments are due by 11:59 p.m. Central time on May 3, 2021. Thanks for your time and input!
Pre-Conference Newsletter for the Illinois State Society of Radiologic Technologists is now available – Spring 2021
The below document outlines proposed changes to the ISSRT Bylaws: