France's national union of independent radiologists (Fédération nationale de médecins radiologues, FNMR) has published an open letter to the president of the republic in the 14 November edition of three of the country's leading newspapers, voicing its disapproval of plans to change the way imaging reimbursement is conducted.
The letter, which was signed by six other unions that use imaging, including general practitioners (GPs) and specialists, and published in Le Figaro, Le Monde, and Le Quotidien, called on the president to intervene for the definitive removal of an amendment in the draft bill for the 2017 social security budget (PLFSS 2017).
According to a statement released by the FNMR, amendment no. 762 (article 52 bis.) of the bill gives total power to the directorate general of the National medical insurance fund for salaried workers (Caisse nationale d'assurance maladie des travailleurs salariés, CNAMTS), for fixing the prices of CT, MRI, and PET. According to the FNMR, the CNAM aims to reduce the costs of certain imaging acts, which are rising due to increasing application. Reduction in tariffs, however, will threaten the potential for private radiology clinics and hospital imaging services to invest in modern equipment thereby limiting access to such cross-sectional techniques for patients, noted the unions in the letter.
The letter reminds the president that imaging equipment in France still does not meet the medical need of patients, and that the country's Cancer Plan III aims to reduce MRI waiting times to 20 days, when the current average delay is 30 days. Furthermore, the costs of PET are growing, and waiting times are not falling because of the increasing demand for this technique in oncology.
The letter also states this amendment, adopted after a first reading by the National Assembly, goes against the principle of medical conventions in which prices are set through an agreement established with partners.
The unions also point to the amendment as a means of pressuring the FNMR into signing a drastic third economic plan.
"This method is unacceptable when the FNMR has been proposing ways of improving the quality of patient care for over a year," wrote the signatories.
