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Medicare Tentatively Decides Not to Pay for Virtual Colonoscopies

February 13, 2009 –The New York Times reports that "Medicare has tentatively decided not to pay for virtual colonoscopies, dealing a setback to a technique that some medical experts recommend as a more tolerable alternative to conventional colonoscopy in screening for colon cancer."

In an online statement, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said "that there was 'insufficient evidence' to conclude that virtual colonoscopy [also known as CT colonography] 'improves outcomes in Medicare beneficiaries.'" The Times adds, "In its analysis, Medicare said many studies supporting virtual colonoscopy were done in people with a mean age around 58, so results might not fully apply to Medicare's older population." For example, "older people are more likely to have polyps. So the proportion of people who would have to have a conventional colonoscopy after a virtual one would be greater," as "a patient would typically undergo a regular colonoscopy to" remove polyps detected during virtual colonoscopy. This would ultimately "make the CT scan less cost-effective." [Read entire article]