AAA screening outreach: the USPSTF 2019 recommendation, Medicare’s one-time ultrasound, smoking history lists and recall texts

Abdominal aortic aneurysm screening is a single ultrasound for a narrow group of older adults, and the group is defined by sex, age, smoking history and family history. That makes it a hard service to market well. Ask too broadly and the practice screens people the federal sources say should not be routinely screened; ask too narrowly, or with a message that names a person’s smoking history on a postcard, and the outreach misses its point or exposes the patient. This guide covers how a primary care practice, an imaging center, a vascular practice or a cardiology practice can build AAA screening pages, recall lists and messages on the USPSTF recommendation and the Medicare rule as written, keep the recommendation and the coverage apart, and send people with symptoms to 911 instead of a booking form.

Nine related topics have their own guides and are not repeated here. Smoking history lists overlap with our guides to lung cancer screening marketing and smoking cessation program marketing. Medicare prevention visits are covered in our guide to annual wellness visit outreach. Screening outside the office is covered in our guides to health fair and screening event marketing and mobile health clinic marketing. Specialty settings are covered in our guides to imaging center marketing, vein clinic marketing and cardiology practice marketing, and cash screening of people with no symptoms in our guide to full body MRI marketing.

What the federal sources say

The USPSTF makes the screening recommendation, Medicare.gov and the Medicare regulation say what Part B pays for, and the NHLBI, CDC and MedlinePlus pages describe the condition for the public. The points that shape an AAA screening program’s marketing:

• The USPSTF final recommendation Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: Screening (December 10, 2019) recommends 1-time screening with ultrasonography in men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked (grade B). For men aged 65 to 75 who have never smoked, it recommends that clinicians selectively offer screening rather than routinely screen all men in the group (grade C). It recommends against routine screening in women who have never smoked and have no family history of AAA (grade D), and finds the evidence insufficient for women aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked or have a family history of AAA (I statement). The recommendation applies to adults with no symptoms.
• The same USPSTF page says the term “ever smoker” is generally defined as having smoked 100 or more cigarettes, that the screening is done once, and that for men aged 65 to 75 who have never smoked, the patient and clinician weigh medical history, family history, other risk factors and personal values.
• The Medicare.gov page Abdominal aortic aneurysm screenings (no date shown, checked October 30, 2026) says Part B covers a screening ultrasound once in a lifetime if the person is at risk, that the person must get a referral from their health care provider, and that the person pays nothing if the provider accepts assignment. It defines at risk as a family history of AAA, or a man between 65 and 75 who has smoked at least 100 cigarettes in his lifetime.
• The regulation behind that page, 42 CFR 410.19, limits payment to one screening for an eligible beneficiary who has not had one under Medicare, after a referral from a physician or a qualified nonphysician practitioner, and defines the screening as a service furnished to an individual with no symptoms. The current text was last amended on December 10, 2013.
• The NHLBI pages Aortic Aneurysm (last updated March 24, 2022) say aneurysms can develop and grow before causing symptoms, that a large one can burst or tear the artery wall, and that both can be life-threatening. The NHLBI risk factor page names age, family history and cigarette smoking.
• The CDC page About Aortic Aneurysm (updated May 15, 2024, read through an archived copy) restates the USPSTF recommendation for men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked, even if they have no symptoms, and names smoking as the main behavior linked to aortic aneurysm.
• The MedlinePlus page Aortic Aneurysm (last updated October 14, 2026) says a ruptured aortic aneurysm is a medical emergency and tells readers to call 911 right away for sudden, severe pain in the belly, chest or back, dizziness or a fast heartbeat.

The USPSTF recommendation is close to seven years old, so we checked whether it is being redone. On October 30, 2026, its page still showed the December 10, 2019 final statement with no update marked, and the USPSTF Recommendations in Progress page did not list it. Name the 2019 recommendation and its date next to any age or group the page gives, and check the USPSTF site at each review.

The Task Force itself has changed. In Kennedy v. Braidwood Management, decided June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court held that Task Force members are inferior officers whose appointment by the Secretary of HHS is consistent with the Appointments Clause, with their work directed and supervised by the Secretary. On September 17, 2026, HHS announced eight new members who join the eight members already serving. Neither event changed the AAA recommendation as of October 30, 2026, and we could not confirm developments after that date. A practice page should quote the recommendation in force on the day it is written and record that date in its review notes.

Two points shape the marketing. First, a USPSTF recommendation and Medicare coverage are different things, with different groups: Medicare covers a person of any sex with a family history of AAA, while the USPSTF finds the evidence insufficient for women with a family history; the USPSTF grade C group of men who never smoked is not in Medicare’s at-risk list unless they have a family history. Second, screening is for people with no symptoms. A page that invites people with belly or back pain to book a screening has the order wrong.

Screening pages and claims that need rewriting

Google’s search suggestions, which we checked on October 30, 2026, offer “aaa screening guidelines”, “aaa screening age”, “aaa screening for women”, “aaa screening ultrasound” and “aaa screening uspstf” to a person who types “aaa screening”, and “aortic aneurysm screening family history”, “aortic aneurysm screening for men” and “aortic aneurysm screening near me” to a person who types “aortic aneurysm screening”. For “aaa screening medicare” they offer “aaa screening medicare coverage” and “medicare aaa screening criteria”, and for “aaa screening who” they offer “who gets aaa screening”, “how long does a aaa screening take” and “aaa screening results”. Billing terms such as “aaa screening icd 10” and “aaa screening cpt code” appear too; those belong to the billing staff, not the patient page.

A page that holds up names the USPSTF and its 2019 date, gives the four groups in the Task Force’s words, says the screening is a single ultrasound for people with no symptoms, explains Medicare’s at-risk list and the referral, says the clinician helps each patient decide, and puts the 911 line above the booking button. The preparation questions in the suggestions, such as fasting before the ultrasound, are for the imaging provider to answer in its own instructions, not for a marketing page to settle.

Phrases that need rewriting:

• “Everyone over 60 should be screened.” No federal source says that. The USPSTF recommends screening for men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked, a selective offer to men aged 65 to 75 who have never smoked, and against routine screening for women who have never smoked and have no family history. Quote the groups and the date.
• “Women need AAA screening too.” The USPSTF recommends against routine screening for women who have never smoked and have no family history of AAA, and finds the evidence insufficient for women aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked or have a family history. Say a woman with a family history or a smoking history can ask her clinician, and that Medicare covers the screening for a person with a family history.
• “Get checked every year.” The USPSTF recommends 1-time screening, and Medicare pays once in a lifetime. Say it is a single ultrasound, and leave follow-up imaging after a finding to the clinician.
• “Free with Medicare.” Medicare.gov says the person pays nothing if the provider accepts assignment, and only for a person in its at-risk list with a referral who has not had the screening under Medicare. Say “no cost under Medicare Part B for people who qualify, with a referral” and that the practice checks eligibility first.
• “Our scan catches aneurysms before they kill.” A promise of an outcome. Say what the USPSTF says the screening is for and that the clinician explains the result and next steps.
• “Know your risk with our vascular screening package.” A bundle of tests sold to people with no symptoms who are outside the USPSTF groups can expose them to the harms the Task Force weighed. Name each test, say who it is for in the federal source’s words, and do not use AAA screening as the hook for unrelated tests.
• “Smokers: you’re a ticking time bomb.” Fear and shame. Name the group in neutral words, such as “men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked”, and leave out the image.
• “Reverse your aneurysm with our heart health supplement.” A supplement claim with no source. Remove it, and follow the supplement section below.
• “We’ve screened thousands of men.” Numbers with no source. Remove them unless they are drawn from the practice’s own documented and reviewed records, with their date and limits stated.

Under 15 U.S.C. 45, deceptive acts or practices in commerce are unlawful, and 15 U.S.C. 52 prohibits false advertisements likely to induce the purchase of drugs, devices, services or cosmetics. The FTC staff Health Products Compliance Guidance says claims about the health benefits or safety of health-related products require competent and reliable scientific evidence, and that an advertiser is responsible for the claims its ads convey, including implied ones. Quoting the federal sources as written, with each one named and dated, stays inside that standard; turning a federal statement into a promise to the reader does not.

Symptoms, urgent signs and 911 on every page and in every tool

A screening page is for people who feel well, so it has to send people with symptoms elsewhere. MedlinePlus says to call 911 right away for sudden, severe pain in the belly, chest or back, dizziness or a fast heartbeat, and the NHLBI symptoms page lists light-headedness, a rapid heart rate and sudden, severe pain in the stomach area, chest or back as signs of a rupture. Put plain lines above the booking button, on flyers and in reminders: this screening is for people with no symptoms; if you have sudden, severe pain in your belly, chest or back, or you feel dizzy or faint, call 911; if you have other symptoms that worry you, call [phone] and do not wait for a screening appointment.

The same wording belongs in voicemail, after-hours greetings, portal replies, text replies, chat and AI front desk tools, and on cards handed out at a screening event. A tool should send any message that describes sudden pain, dizziness or fainting to the 911 line and alert staff, pass questions about whether a patient qualifies to a clinician, hand questions about a result to a clinician, and never tell a patient whether they have or need to worry about an aneurysm. Our guides to the AI chatbot on a practice website and answering service versus AI receptionist cover how tools hand off these messages.

Who to invite, and in whose words

The groups decide the program. A practice that builds its outreach on the USPSTF groups and the Medicare at-risk list ends up with three kinds of patients, and each gets different wording.

Keep these points:

• Men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked are the USPSTF grade B group and are also in Medicare’s at-risk list if they have smoked at least 100 cigarettes. They can be invited directly: the screening is recommended for them, once.
• Men aged 65 to 75 who have never smoked are the grade C group. The USPSTF asks clinicians to offer screening selectively, after weighing the man’s history and values. Invite them to talk with their clinician about it, not to book a scan.
• A person of any sex with a family history of AAA is in Medicare’s at-risk list. For women in that group, the USPSTF finds the evidence insufficient. Invite them to ask their clinician, and say Medicare covers the screening for people with a family history if the clinician refers them.
• Women who have never smoked and have no family history are the grade D group. Do not invite them to screening, and do not run an ad that suggests they need it.
• Ages matter at both ends. The USPSTF groups run from 65 to 75; a man of 77 who has ever smoked is outside the grade B group, even though nothing in the Medicare page names an upper age for people with a family history. Let the clinician decide outside the stated groups.
• Ask about smoking history and family history in the clinician’s intake, not on a public page or an ad form. A page can say who the screening is for and ask the reader to call or book a visit to talk about it.

Smoking history connects AAA screening with other programs. A practice that runs lung cancer screening and smoking cessation can offer an AAA screening conversation to the same patients, but each program has its own groups and rules: do not merge the age ranges, and do not tell a patient they qualify for one because they qualify for the other. Our guides to lung cancer screening marketing and smoking cessation program marketing cover those programs.

Medicare: once in a lifetime, with a referral

Coverage pages draw the “aaa screening medicare coverage” and “medicare aaa screening criteria” searches. Answer them from the Medicare.gov page and the regulation, with the date checked: Part B covers one screening ultrasound in a lifetime for a person at risk, defined as a family history of AAA or a man aged 65 to 75 who has smoked at least 100 cigarettes; the person needs a referral from their provider; and the person pays nothing if the provider accepts assignment. Under 42 CFR 410.19, payment is limited to a person who has not had the screening under Medicare, and the screening must be done by a provider or supplier authorized to provide covered ultrasound diagnostic services.

Two practical points follow. A page should not tie the referral to a single kind of visit: the current regulation asks for a referral from a physician or a qualified nonphysician practitioner, and a handout that says otherwise should be checked against the current text. And a practice should check whether the patient has had the screening under Medicare before inviting them, because a second screening is not paid as a screening. Our guides to marketing to Medicare patients and annual wellness visit outreach cover the wider Medicare rules and the visit where a referral conversation can happen.

Private plans follow 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13, which requires group health plans and health insurers to cover, without cost sharing, evidence-based items or services that have in effect a rating of A or B in the current USPSTF recommendations. The AAA recommendation for men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked is grade B; the selective offer to men who have never smoked is grade C, and the rule does not reach it. Do not write “free under the ACA” or “covered by all insurance”; say the practice checks coverage before the visit. Cash prices for the ultrasound follow our guides to advertising cash prices and good faith estimates for self-pay patients.

A “free” screening, a gift card for coming in or a raffle at a screening event follows 16 CFR 251.1, which says a free offer must not be recouped through a raised price or a reduced quantity or quality elsewhere, and that the terms of the offer should be stated at the outset. Under 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7a(a)(5), civil penalties can apply to a person who offers or transfers remuneration to a Medicare or state health care program beneficiary that the person knows or should know is likely to influence the beneficiary to order or receive items or services from a particular provider, practitioner or supplier. A free screening that leads to paid follow-up imaging or a procedure needs counsel’s review before it runs.

Community screening events and cash packages

AAA ultrasound is offered at churches, senior centers and pharmacies, alone or as part of a cash package of vascular and heart tests. These events reach people who would not book a visit, and they also reach people outside the USPSTF groups who pay for a test the Task Force did not recommend for them. Our guides to health fair and screening event marketing and mobile health clinic marketing cover the event rules.

For AAA screening at an event, keep these points:

• Say on the flyer who the screening is for, in the USPSTF’s words and with its date, and that it is for people with no symptoms. Do not sell an AAA scan to a woman who has never smoked and has no family history.
• Name each test in a package, say what it checks, and say whether a federal source recommends it for people with no symptoms. Our guide to full body MRI marketing covers cash screening of people who feel well.
• Plan the follow-up before the event: who reads the scan, who tells the person the result, and how a finding reaches the person’s own clinician with their agreement. A result handed over with no clinician to explain it is not a service.
• Take sign-ups by phone or through a booking tool covered by a written agreement, not on a paper sheet that asks about smoking or family history.
• Do not pay the host church, community or pharmacy per person screened, and follow the partner section below.

Results and follow-up messages

The “aaa screening results” search comes from people waiting on a letter or a call. A result that shows an aneurysm leads to a conversation about size, follow-up imaging and possibly repair, which the USPSTF says depends on aneurysm size, the risk of rupture and the risk of surgery. That conversation belongs to the clinician. A marketing team can help with the wording around it: a portal message that asks the patient to call or book a follow-up, a result letter that names no finding on the envelope, and a page that explains in general terms what happens after a screening, without sizes, rupture risks or repair rates.

A practice that does repairs, such as a vascular surgery practice, should keep its procedure pages separate from its screening pages, describe procedures by their general type, name no device maker, and make no claim about results unless it quotes a federal source with its date. A screening program should not be presented as the front door to a procedure.

Supplements and heart health products

Heart health products sold next to a screening program need the same care as any health claim. The FDA Questions and Answers on Dietary Supplements (content current as of August 27, 2026) says FDA does not have the authority to approve dietary supplements before they are marketed. Name no product, make no claim that a supplement prevents, shrinks or slows an aneurysm, and follow our guide to selling supplements in a medical practice.

Recall texts, letters and reminders

Outreach programs reach patients through recall lists: men aged 65 to 75 with a smoking history on file and no AAA screening on record, and patients with a family history noted. Under 45 CFR 164.501, a communication about the practice’s own treatment for an individual, such as a reminder to come in for a recommended screening, can fall outside the definition of marketing, while a message that promotes a third party’s product or service generally needs a signed authorization under 45 CFR 164.508.

The words in the message matter as much as the rule. These lists are built from smoking history and family history, and a text, a postcard or a voicemail can be seen by a partner, a family member or an employer. Keep these points:

• Name no condition and no reason the patient qualifies. Write “[Practice name]: you may be due for a recommended one-time screening. Call [phone] or book online.” and give details only after the patient signs in or calls.
• Do not write “because you smoked”, “because of your family history” or “aneurysm” on a postcard, an envelope, a caller ID name or a voicemail.
• Check records before the message goes out, so a patient who has had the screening is not invited again.
• Leave out patients outside the groups, such as women who have never smoked and have no family history, rather than sending one message to every patient over 65.
• Send messages in the language the patient chose, use the contact method the patient chose, and honor opt-out requests in every channel.
• Do not send recall lists, smoking status or screening records to an ad platform to build an audience.

Our guides to text message appointment reminders and the patient recall system cover consent, timing and opt-outs.

Partners, sponsors and referral payments

Under 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b(b), the federal anti-kickback statute, it is a crime to knowingly and willfully offer, pay, solicit or receive any remuneration to induce or reward referrals of items or services payable by a federal health care program. Rules on referral fees are also set state by state.

For an AAA screening program, keep these points:

• Do not pay a screening company, an imaging center, a church, a senior living community or an outreach worker per person screened or referred, and do not accept payment from a vascular practice or an imaging center for sending screening patients there, without counsel’s review.
• Do not accept free scans, staff, event funding or marketing help from a device maker tied to the procedures that follow, without counsel’s review; our guide to Open Payments and the Sunshine Act covers industry payments.
• If a primary care practice and a vascular or imaging practice share patients, put the terms in writing, let the patient choose where to go, and follow our guide to patient and physician referrals.

Privacy, pixels and ads

A visit to an AAA screening page, a smoking history question on a booking form or an eligibility quiz can say something about the person’s health. Keep form answers, bookings and page clicks out of tracking pixels and ad platform tools unless a written agreement covers them; our guide to tracking pixels on practice websites covers the setup. The Google Ads personalized advertising policy lists health among its sensitive interest categories and restricts targeting based on it. Ads can target by place, language settings and search terms, and should not be built from a list of patients who smoke or have a family history.

Tone and patient stories

The grade B group is men aged 65 to 75 with a smoking history, and some of them have heard about their smoking for decades. Shame and fear can make a man ignore the message. Lead with what the screening is, a single painless ultrasound for people with no symptoms, who the USPSTF recommends it for, and how short the visit is; offer times that suit people who rely on others for rides; and keep fear out of it: no ruptured artery images, no countdowns, no wording that blames a person for smoking. Respect a patient who declines, and say the clinician will answer questions. Offer the page in the languages the practice’s patients speak; our guide to Spanish language medical marketing covers translation.

A story from a man who came in for a screening after a reminder can carry the message. Under 16 CFR 255.2, an ad that shows one person’s result on a key attribute is likely to be read as what others will generally achieve, unless the advertiser has substantiation for that or clearly and conspicuously discloses what people can generally expect. A story that says the screening saved someone’s life is that kind of claim. Pair the story with the attributed USPSTF statement, say results differ, and get a signed authorization under 45 CFR 164.508 where the practice is a covered entity. A story should not name a diagnosis, a treatment or a result unless the patient chose to share it in writing; say if the person received anything for taking part, and let them review the final version. Our guides to patient photo consent and testimonials and before and after photos cover the full rules.

Illustration: two AAA screening messages

Illustration: a flyer reads “Over 60? Get your free aneurysm scan every year! Smokers are ticking time bombs, and our vascular package catches aneurysms before they kill. Women need it too. Add our heart health supplement to reverse damage. We’ve screened thousands!” It widens the USPSTF groups, says every year where the sources say once, promises free care without the Medicare conditions, uses fear and shame, sells a package to people outside the groups, makes a supplement claim and uses a number with no source.

Illustration: a second flyer for the same practice reads “Men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked: the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (December 10, 2019) recommends a one-time ultrasound to check for an abdominal aortic aneurysm. Never smoked, or have a family member who had one? Ask your clinician whether screening is right for you. Medicare Part B covers one screening for people at risk, with a referral; we check your coverage first. This screening is for people with no symptoms. If you have sudden, severe pain in your belly, chest or back, or you feel dizzy or faint, call 911. To book, call [phone]. [Practice name], [days and hours].” It quotes the source and date, separates the groups, states the Medicare conditions and puts the 911 line on the flyer.

Checklist before an AAA screening campaign goes live

• Screening copy built on the USPSTF 2019 recommendation, named and dated, with its four groups in the Task Force’s words; the USPSTF site checked for an update on the day the page is written, with the date recorded in the page’s review notes.
• Medicare coverage described as Medicare.gov and 42 CFR 410.19 state it: once in a lifetime, the at-risk list, a referral, and no cost if the provider accepts assignment; records checked for a past screening; private plan coverage checked per patient.
• No “everyone over 60”, no “every year”, no “women need it too” for the grade D group, no “free” without the Medicare conditions, no life-saving promise and no fear or shame wording.
• The no-symptoms line and the 911 line on pages, flyers, event cards, voicemail, after-hours greetings, portal replies, text replies, chat and AI front desk tools, reviewed by the practice’s clinicians.
• Recall texts, postcards, caller ID names and voicemails name no condition, no smoking history and no family history; lists limited to the groups; opt-outs honored.
• Events and cash packages name each test and who it is for, plan the follow-up and the handoff to the person’s own clinician, and take sign-ups without paper health forms.
• No per-person payments to screening companies, imaging centers, hosts or vascular practices, and no device maker funding tied to procedures, without counsel’s review.
• Free screenings, gift cards and raffles reviewed by counsel under 16 CFR 251.1 and 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7a(a)(5).
• No supplement claims; form answers, bookings and patient lists stay out of pixels and ad audiences; stories have signed authorizations and say results differ.

How we help

We build websites, local search, Google Ads and AI front desk tools for independent practices and health businesses, including primary care, internal medicine, geriatric, cardiology, vascular and imaging practices. For an AAA screening program, that means a site that builds its screening pages on the USPSTF recommendation as written and dated, separates the recommendation from Medicare coverage, puts the no-symptoms and 911 lines above the booking button, works for older readers, and answers “aaa screening age” and “aaa screening medicare coverage” searches honestly, plus appointment request pages that book the visit and keep smoking and family history answers off the web and away from tracking tools. Our front desk tools send messages about sudden pain or dizziness to the 911 line, hand eligibility and result questions to a clinician, and do not tell patients whether they need a screening. We do not decide who should be screened; your clinicians and patients do. Our tools are built with HIPAA in mind. We confirm in writing what a BAA covers before any patient information flows through a tool, and if it is not covered, we do not route patient information through it. We are not a healthcare provider and we do not give legal or medical advice. We do not sell lead lists and we do not pay for referrals. For the wider rules, see our healthcare marketing rules hub.

Sources

• USPSTF: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: Screening (final recommendation, December 10, 2019)
• USPSTF: Recommendations in Progress (checked October 30, 2026)
• HHS: Secretary Kennedy Announces New Appointments to U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (September 17, 2026)
• Kennedy v. Braidwood Management, Inc. (U.S. Supreme Court, decided June 27, 2025)
• Medicare.gov: Abdominal aortic aneurysm screenings (checked October 30, 2026)
• 42 CFR 410.19: Ultrasound screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms
• NHLBI: Aortic Aneurysm (last updated March 24, 2022)
• NHLBI: Aortic Aneurysm: Causes and Risk Factors (last updated March 24, 2022)
• NHLBI: Aortic Aneurysm: Symptoms (last updated March 24, 2022)
• CDC: About Aortic Aneurysm (updated May 15, 2024)
• MedlinePlus: Aortic Aneurysm (last updated October 14, 2026)
• 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13: Coverage of preventive health services
• 45 CFR 164.501: Definitions
• 45 CFR 164.508: Uses and disclosures for which an authorization is required
• 15 U.S.C. 45: Unfair methods of competition unlawful
• 15 U.S.C. 52: Dissemination of false advertisements
• FTC: Health Products Compliance Guidance (December 2022)
• FDA: Questions and Answers on Dietary Supplements (content current as of August 27, 2026)
• 16 CFR 251.1: Guide concerning use of the word free and similar representations
• 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7a: Civil monetary penalties
• 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b: Criminal penalties for acts involving Federal health care programs
• 16 CFR 255.2: Consumer endorsements
• Google Ads: Personalized advertising policy

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