2006 proposed fee schedule - American Society of Clinical Oncology

specialty on the basis of the CPEP data and work RVUs
assigned to each CPT code. The specific process is detailed
as follows:
Step 1--Calculation of the SMS Cost Pool for Each Specialty
The six SMS cost categories can be described as either
direct or indirect expenses. The three direct expense
categories include clinical labor, medical supplies and
medical equipment. Indirect expenses include administrative
labor, office expense, and all other expenses. We combine
these indirect expenses into a single category. The SMS
cost pool for each specialty is calculated as follows:
● The specialty PE per hour (PE/HR) for each of the
three direct and one indirect cost categories from the SMS
is calculated by dividing the aggregate PE per specialty by
the specialty’s total hours spent in patient care activities
(also determined by the SMS survey). The PE/HR is divided
by 60 seconds to obtain the PE per minute (PE/MIN).
● Each specialty's PE pools (for each of the three
direct and one indirect cost categories) are created by
multiplying the PE/MIN for the specialty by the total time
the specialty spent treating Medicare patients for all
procedures (determined using Medicare utilization data).
Physician time on a procedure-specific level is available
through RUC surveys of new or revised codes and through
surveys conducted as part of the 5 year review process. For
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