SVM Positions

SVM Calls USPSTF Coronary Heart Disease Recommendations Ill-advised
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force released recommendations in October discouraging the use of what it deems "nontraditional risk factors" in screening for vascular disease.

The Society for Vascular Medicine (SVM) finds these Task Force recommendations, particularly those discouraging the use of ankle-brachial index (ABI) screening for peripheral arterial disease (PAD), ill-advised and contrary to sound medical research. In a 2006 publication, the Task Force dismissed PAD as an important risk factor in cardiovascular disease. However, PAD is not merely a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, it is cardiovascular disease. PAD is thought to affect 8 - 10 million Americans. Individuals with PAD have a five-times increased risk of suffering an heart attack, stroke, or death within five years.

Read the full statement.

SVM Helped Develop and Endorsed and the 2009 ACCF/AHA Focused Update on Perioperative Beta Blockade Incorporated Into the ACC/AHA 2007 Guidelines on Perioperative Cardiovascular Evaluation and Care for Noncardiac Surgery
Read the document here.

SVM Issues Statement on Lymphedema Diagnosis and Treatment
The Society for Vascular Medicine has sent a letter to the "Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee" (MEDCAC) Medicare panel. The panel solicits testimony on various Medicare coverage issues. On November 18, the panel will meet to hear public comments on Lymphedema diagnosis and treatment.

In response, SVM's Advocacy Committee drafted a letter, which was approved by the SVM Board of Directors. This is a significant step for SVM, which in the past signed on to other organization's letters in these case. Dr. Stephen Dean will be attending the Nov. 18 meeting and will represent SVM there.

These meetings typically occur when Medicare is considering revising their coverage policies and therefore, it is critical that knowledgeable informed clinicians provide the necessary information for Medicare. Absent good information, access to lymphedema care will be at significant risk.

Read the Letter.

SVM Supports Petition for Expanded Coverage for PAD Testing
The Peripheral Arterial Disease (P.A.D.) Coalition has launched a petition drive at padcoalition.org to urge President Obama and Congress to increase access to evidence-based health care for individuals with P.A.D.

Learn how you can help.

SVM responds to the California Technology Assessment Forum's draft assessment of Carotid Artery Stenting.

SVM responds to Senate Finance Committee's health care reform coverage proposal regarding abdominal aortic aneurysm screenings

Grassroots Effort to Support the SAAAVE Act of 2009
The Screening Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Very Efficiently (SAAAVE) Act was included in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and became effective on Jan. 1, 2007. The law provides a one-time AAA ultrasound screening for at-risk Medicare beneficiaries, including male-ever smokers and men and women with a family history of AAA.
 
The problem is this screening is tied to the Welcome to Medicare Physical Exam which is only available during the first year of Medicare eligibility. Because of this, many at-risk beneficiaries are not getting screened - less than 10,000 beneficiaries were screened in 2007. Also, many primary care physicians and patients are not aware that this benefit is available.
 
To address these problems, H.R. 1213, the SAAAVE Act of 2009, has been introduced by Representatives Gene Green (D-TX) and John Shimkus (R-IL). The bill unlinks AAA screening with the Welcome to Medicare Physical Exam and extends the one time benefit to 65-75 year-old, at-risk Medicare beneficiaries.
 
Please request your member of Congress to sign onto this legislation as a co-sponsor by using the letter template provided.

SVM Recommends Expanded Coverage of Carotid Stenting to CMS
In August, SVM sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to advocate for expansion of coverage of carotid stenting. Read the letter here.

Help Support Expanded Coverage of Carotid Artery Stenting
At the end of October, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will announce whether it will expand coverage of carotid artery stenting. Currently, CMS covers carotid stenting only for high-risk patients. Expanded coverage would allow more patients with blockages in their carotid arteries who are at risk for stroke to receive this important and life-saving treatment. Although the procedure received FDA approval in 2005 and significant data exist supporting its safety and efficacy, highly invasive surgery currently is the only option for many carotid artery disease patients.

We encourage you to share your opinion on this issue with your Congressional representatives.

SVM Endorses American Society of Echocardiography Carotid Intima-Media Thickness Task Force Consensus Statement
There is great interest in identifying asymptomatic patients at high risk who might be candidates for more intensive, evidence-based medical interventions that reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Measurement of carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) with B-mode ultrasound is a noninvasive, sensitive, and reproducible technique for identifying and quantifying subclinical vascular disease and for evaluating CVD risk. To address issues of standardization and help improve the availability of experienced clinical laboratories that can perform high-quality CIMT studies, this consensus document provides recommendations for the use of carotid ultrasound for identifying and quantifying subclinical vascular disease and for evaluating CVD risk in clinical practice. Read the complete statement.

SVM and Related Organizations Representing the Nation's Cardiovascular Specialists Urge Members of the U.S. House of Representatives to Vote in Favor of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act

Heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women in the U.S. and smoking is a major cause of heart disease. Around 35 percent of all smoking-related deaths in the U.S. are from heart disease. Cigarette smokers are 2 to 4 times more likely to develop coronary heart disease than nonsmokers, and 2 to 3 times more likely to die from it. Women are at especially high risk. We strongly support the "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act," which would help protect the public from the harm of tobacco products by giving the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate the manufacture, distribution, sale, labeling, advertising and promotion of tobacco products. Read the full letter (PDF).

SVM Endorses ACC's Core Cardiology Training Symposium (COCATS), Task Force 11 Report, Vascular Medicine and Peripheral Catheter-Based Intervention

Cardiovascular physicians frequently encounter vascular diseases. Atherosclerosis and thrombosis, in particular, are systemic disorders with clinical manifestations in most peripheral circulations. These and other vascular diseases account for substantial cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Moreover, technological advances in imaging techniques and catheter-based interventions have brought management of vascular diseases firmly into the sphere of the cardiovascular specialist. Training in vascular medicine should be incorporated in a cardiovascular fellowship in order to accommodate the clinical demands of this contemporary paradigm. The COCATS document describes training for physicians who see patients with vascular disease.

SVM endorses ACC/AHA 2007 Guidelines on Perioperative Cardiovascular
Evaluation and Care for Noncardiac Surgery

A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force
on Practice Guidelines (Writing Committee to Revise the 2002 Guidelines on Perioperative
Cardiovascular Evaluation for Noncardiac Surgery); Developed in Collaboration With the American Society of Echocardiography, American Society of Nuclear Cardiology, Heart Rhythm Society, Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, Society for Vascular Medicine and Biology, and Society for Vascular Surgery. Read the full statement. (PDF)

SVM Joins Newly Formed Coalition Focused on DVT and Pulmonary Embolism Awareness

The Society for Vascular Medicine has joined the newly formed Venous Disease Coalition (VDC). The VDC is a collaborative network of professional and public nonprofit organizations sharing the mission and vision to increase public and health professional awareness of venous disease, including DVT, pulmonary embolism (known collectively as venous thromboembolism or "VTE"). Read the complete statement.

SVM Endorses ACCF/AHA 2007 Clinical Competence Statement on Vascular Imaging with Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance

A Report of the American College of Cardiology Foundation/American Heart Association/American College of Physicians Task Force on Clinical Competence and Training Developed in Collaboration with the Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging and Prevention, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, the Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography, the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance, and the Society for Vascular Medicine. Read the complete statement. (PDF)