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Information for mammography facility personnel, inspectors, and consumers               about the implementation of the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 (MQSA)

Accreditation Bodies

Effective May 5, 2004, the State of California’s (SCA) Accreditation Body (AB) voluntarily withdrew its application seeking status as an AB under the Mammography Quality Standards Act (MQSA) Final Regulations. The SCA has relinquished its authority as a MQSA AB and will no longer be accrediting mammography facilities in California.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the American College of Radiology’s (ACR) plans to begin (in a phased-in manner) accrediting SCA facilities and charging fees associated with this process to allow facilities to perform mammography without interruption.

In its oversight role, the FDA will temporarily address all consumer complaints (for facilities that have not yet formally transferred their accreditation to ACR) through its FDA MQSA Hotline:

Telephone Number: 1-800-838-7715
Mailing address: P.O. Box 6057, Columbia, MD 21046-6057

Questions about the transition process may be directed to the ACR, as follows:

Mammography Accreditation Program
American College of Radiology
1891 Preston White Drive
Reston, VA 20191

1-800-227-6440 (office)
703-648-9176 (fax)
Judy Ireland, R.T. (R)(M) x-4233 or
Pamela Platt, B.S.R.T. (R)(M)(CV) x-4595

To be FDA-certified, a facility must first apply to, and become accredited by, an FDA-approved accreditation body. Currently these are:

• American College of Radiology(ACR)
  Mammography Accreditation Program
  1-800-227-6440

• Arkansas Department of Health
  Division of Radiation Control and Emergency Management
  1-501-661-2319 or 1-501-661-2301

• Iowa Department of Health
  Bureau of Radiological Health
  Mammography Accreditation Program
  1-515-281-3478

• Texas Department of Health
  Bureau of Radiation Control
  1-512-834-6688

To be accredited by the States of Arkansas, Iowa, or Texas a facility must be located in that accreditation body's state. Under MQSA regulations, a facility located in a state with a FDA-approved accreditation body may be accredited either by the state or by the ACR. However, if state law requires every facility to have state accreditation or state certification, facilities must satisfy those regulations. These state requirements are independent of MQSA.

For more information about Accreditation and Certification, consult the Policy Guidance Help System.

• 2000 Report to Congress on the Performance of Accreditation Bodies
  [Text] [PDF] (posted 7/12/02)
• 2000 Report to Congress on the Performance of Accreditation Bodies - Executive Summary
  [Text] [PDF] (posted 7/12/02)

Updated May 24, 2004

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