House Panel Reviews ACR Priorities on Medicare Reform

The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee recently reviewed bills focused on Medicare payment, healthcare access and care delivery. Among them were two key ACR^® priorities: the Radiology Outpatient Ordering Transmission (ROOT) Act (H.R. 5737) and the Patients First Act (H.R. 9693).

The ROOT Act, introduced by Reps. Diana Harshbarger, R-TN, and Blake Moore, R-UT, would modernize Medicare's Appropriate Use Criteria program for advanced imaging. Congress established the program under the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, but implementation challenges have persisted since it became law, prompting an indefinite pause in the program since 2024. The ROOT Act would streamline the process, reduce administrative burdens and help limit unnecessary imaging, saving money for both Medicare and beneficiaries.

The Patients First Act, introduced by Reps. John Joyce, R-PA, Greg Murphy, R-NC, and Kim Schrier, D-WA, would address long-standing issues in Medicare physician payment. If enacted, the bill includes an annual payment update tied to inflation, creates a physician-led task force to improve quality measures and reduce administrative burden, and incorporates the ACR-supported Provider Reimbursement Stability Act and the ROOT Act.

By including the ROOT Act, the Patients First Act advances reforms to Medicare's imaging Appropriate Use Criteria program while supporting broader Medicare payment modernization. ACR submitted a statement for the hearing record in support of the ROOT Act. The College will continue to work with lawmakers to advance both bills as Congress considers Medicare reform.

For more information, contact Ben Melano, ACR Director of Government Affairs.