2010-06-17
The Senate
continues to struggle to prevent a cut in Medicare physician payments. A provision that would stop a cut in
payments through 2011 was included in a separate measure to extend popular tax
breaks and safety net programs (HR
4213), and passed by the House of Representatives in May. But Senate leaders
have been forced to rework that bill after it failed to gather the required 60
votes for passage earlier this week. A revised version of the bill unveiled June
16 seeks to address concerns among
fiscal conservatives in both parties that the earlier version would have
increased the deficit by $78.7 billion and did not include “offsets” or ways to
pay for costly provisions like physician payment. The new version trims $16.4
billion by extending relief from the physician payment cut only until November 30,
2010. Senate leaders hope to vote on this measure soon.
Congress
has stepped in to avert the impending cuts in physician payments almost every
year since the doctor payment formula was created under the 1997 Balanced
Budget Act. This year’s efforts,
however, have run into increasing resistance from fiscal conservatives,
particularly in the Senate. Congress has allowed a short-term “doc fix” to
expire three times this year, most recently on May 31. The latest showdown came
after the House on May 28 approved its version of HR 4213, extending physician
rate relief through 2011. Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) proposed a
Senate alternative on June 8 that also would avoid the cut in doctors’ payments
through 2011, which failed to achieve Senate passage. By turning again to a
short-term extension, lawmakers are setting up a return to the issue after the
November elections.
Since June 1 when the last short-term payment fix expired, the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services instructed its
contractors to hold claims for services paid through June 17 in an effort to
avoid disruption in claims processing. Should Congress not be able to pass legislation blocking the cuts in
physician payment by today’s deadline, the hold will be lifted and claims would
receive a 21 percent payment cut until legislation is passed restoring the cut
retroactively.
All physicians are
encouraged to contact their senators to urge passage of legislation averting
the payment cuts. Please visit the ASH Advocacy Center to join
ASH’s campaign and send a letter
your senators.
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