Four of those 25 seats rotate every 2 years. This year, the rotating seats are filled by representatives from infectious disease, oncology/hematology, pediatric surgery, and primary care.
The remaining six seats are reserved for the RUC chair, a representative of the Health Care Professionals Advisory Committee Review Board, a representative from the Practice Expense Review Committee, a representative from the CPT Editorial Panel, an AMA representative, and a representative of the American Osteopathic Association.
The AMA Board of Trustees selects the RUC chair; RUC members are nominated by their specialty societies and approved by the AMA.
The RUC has been criticized as lacking adequate representation from primary care. The AMA tried to address some of that criticism in 2012 by adding a permanent seat for geriatrics and a rotating seat for a primary care representative.
Members of the RUC are appointed as technical experts, not as representatives of an individual medical society. Recommendations must be approved by two-thirds of the RUC to be sent on to CMS.
mschneider@frontlinemedcom.com
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