The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has released its June 2011 “Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System.” Most notably, the report includes a number of recommendations that have generated much controversy to address the growing use of ancillary services, particularly non-hospital diagnostic imaging services. According to the report, MedPAC seeks to “improve payment accuracy to reduce providers’ financial incentives to order more ancillary services, while strengthening clinical support tools to improve appropriate use of these services.” Recommendations in this area include the following: (1) the Secretary should accelerate and expand efforts to package discrete services in the physician fee schedule into larger units for payment; (2) Congress should direct the Secretary to apply a multiple procedure payment reduction to the professional component of diagnostic imaging services provided by the same practitioner in the same session; (3) Congress should direct the Secretary to reduce the physician work component of imaging and other diagnostic tests that are ordered and performed by the same practitioner; and (4) Congress should direct the Secretary to establish a prior authorization program for practitioners who order substantially more advanced diagnostic imaging services than their peers. In addition to the ancillary services recommendations, the report includes chapters examining: the Medicare physician fee schedule Sustainable Growth Rate formula; Medicare’s fee-for-service benefit design; enhancing Medicare’s technical assistance to and oversight of providers; coordinating care for dual-eligible beneficiaries; federally-qualified health centers; and variation in private-sector payment rates. Note that while MedPAC’s recommendations are not binding, Congress and CMS often take into account MedPAC’s assessments when updating Medicare payment policies.