Gabryszak: Portable X-Ray Demo Program Extension Passes Assembly

May 26, 2010

Assemblyman Dennis Gabryszak (D-Cheektowaga) said a bill he authored that extends the expiration date of a demonstration program to study the cost-effectiveness of Medicaid coverage for portable X-ray services passed the Assembly (A.10607).

“Portable X-ray services are vitally important to our most vulnerable citizens, including residents of long-term and intermediate care facilities or home-bound individuals requiring constant care,” Gabryszak said.

Gabryszak said if patients cannot access portable X-ray services when an X-ray is ordered by an authorized health care practitioner, then they must be transported by ambulance to a stationary radiological site – an impractical, costly solution.

“Ambulances are not just costly – they can be especially traumatizing for patients,” Gabryszak said. “Many states allow for Medicaid reimbursement for portable X-ray and diagnostic ultrasound services – as does the federal Medicare program. We took an important first step by creating the current program, and we’ve continued along that path with this common-sense extension.”

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