FEE SCHEDULES FOR PHYSICIAN PATHOLOGY SERVICES.

SEC. 4050. FEE SCHEDULES FOR PHYSICIAN PATHOLOGY SERVICES. (a) In General.— The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall develop— 101 STAT. 1330–93 (1) a relative value scale to serve as the basis for the payment for physician pathology services under part B of title XVIII of the Social Security Act, (2) using such scale and appropriate conversion factors, proposed fee schedules (on a regional, statewide, or carrier service area basis) for payment for physician pathology services under such part, that could be implemented for such services furnished during 1990, and (3) an appropriate index to be applied to updating such fee schedules annually for physician pathology services furnished in years after 1990. (b) Consultation.— In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall regularly consult closely with the Physician Payment Review Commission, the College of American Pathologists, and other organizations representing physicians who furnish physician pathology services and shall share with them the data and data analysis being used to make the determinations under subsection (a), including data on variations in current medicare payments by geographic area, and by service and physician specialty. (c) Consideration.— In developing the fee schedules under subsection (a), the Secretary shall take into consideration variations in the cost of furnishing physician pathology services among geographic areas. (d) Report.— The Secretary shall report, not later than April 1, 1989, to the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate on the relative value scale, fee schedules, and the index developed under this section. Such report shall include recommendations on how to protect medicare beneficiaries against excessive charges for physician pathology services above the payment amounts established by the fee schedules.