Petaluma, CA-based QT Imaging said the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has created a separately payable hospital outpatient classification for diagnostic exams performed with its QTscan 3D ultrasound tomography system. The classification takes effect January 1, 2027.
The change appears in the final 2027 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) rule and reverses an earlier CMS proposal to classify QTscan exams as nonpayable, according to the company. CMS assigned the exam’s Category III CPT code, 1079T, to ambulatory payment classification (APC) 5522 with status indicator “S.” The American Medical Association’s CPT Editorial Panel approved the code in February.
Payment applies only to physician-ordered exams that address a specific diagnostic question. Routine screening of asymptomatic patients isn’t covered under current Medicare rules, the firm noted.
