NCHR Comments on CMS’s Proposed Decision Regarding Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty (PTA) of the Carotid Artery

August 10, 2023: CMS released a draft decision to cover an experimental procedure for stroke prevention on populations who are normally too low-risk to be considered for surgical intervention. There is no evidence that this experimental procedure, a Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty (PTA), is a beneficial treatment over optimal medical (non-surgical) care in patients with moderate narrowing of their carotid arteries. Yet, there are many documented risks to this procedure and we are concerned that covering this experimental procedure in a lower-risk stroke population will cause real harm to Medicare patients and increase the cost of medical care.

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