Statement for the Record
on behalf of the
American Association of Neurological Surgeons
and the
Congress of Neurological Surgeons
before the
Committee on Small Business
U.S. House of Representatives
on the topic of
Utilization Management: Barriers to Care and Burdens on
Small Medical Practice
Wednesday, September 11, 2019
11:30 a.m.
2360 Rayburn House Office Building
Chairwoman Velázquez, Ranking Member Chabot and members of the committee, on behalf of the
American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons
(CNS), representing more than 4,000 practicing neurosurgeons in the United States, we appreciate the
opportunity to submit a statement for the record regarding your hearing titled, “Utilization Management:
Barriers to Care and Burdens on Small Medical Practice.” Like you, we believe that reducing
unnecessary administrative burden is critical to lowering costs and removing obstacles that get in the
way of physicians delivering high-quality care to their patients. While our health care system, including
the Medicare and Medicaid programs, is complex, over time, the accumulated regulatory burdens foisted
on physician practices has reached a tipping point.
The single most pressing issue facing neurosurgical practices today is burdensome utilization review
programs — including prior authorization and appropriate use criteria (AUC) for advanced diagnostic
imaging. This is especially true for smaller neurosurgical practices. We, therefore, appreciate you
holding this hearing today to shed light on this topic.
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