TEXAS BILL SEEKS TO ESTABLISH REIMBURSEMENT FOR CORONARY ARTERY CALCIUM SCREENING

A member of the Texas House of Representatives, Rep. René Oliveira (D), has introduced a bill that would require insurers to reimburse certain tests for heart disease.

The bill is reportedly based on recommendations made by the Screening for Heart Attack Prevention and Education Task Force, an international contingent of leading cardiologists and researchers organized by the Association for Eradication of Heart Attack.

The bill, filed Feb. 14, would require private insurance companies to cover a minimum of $200 (or less if the cost of the test was less) per coronary artery calcium screening using computerized tomography and/or carotid ultrasound screening in intermediate-risk individuals.

The bill, H.B.1438, can be viewed at www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/80R/billtext/pdf/HB01438I.pdf (http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/80R/billtext/pdf/HB01438I.pdf).