Congressman Donald M. Payne Jr. (D-NJ) introduced the Amputation Reduction and Compassion (ARC) Act that would allow Medicare or Medicaid beneficiaries who are at risk for peripheral artery disease (PAD) to use the program to pay for screening tests without cost-sharing requirements. PAD-related amputations can be prevented with early screening and diagnosis.
Payne also wrote a letter to House and Senate leadership asking them to prevent Medicare cuts to specialty physicians that could affect doctors who treat PAD patients.
“I took these actions to protect Americans who could lose a limb to a preventable disease,” Payne said. “PAD is treatable, if we catch it early. Medicare and Medicaid treat our most vulnerable citizens. We need to allow these two critical programs to support medical professionals and patients and not cut critical funding that could cause Americans to lose their limbs.”
