President George W. Bush signed into law a measure that prevents the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) from implementing a behavioral offset provision that would have reduced Medicare inpatient hospital reimbursements by $20.3 billion over five years. (Kaiser Network)
When the House of Representatives passed the measure in July, Congressman Jerry Weller said CMS sought to preemptively punish hospitals “before they’ve done anything wrong.” CMS attempted to reduce reimbursements in anticipation of hospitals upcoding, or billing Medicare at higher rates.
The new law will also delay a rule that requires doctors to write Medicare drug prescriptions on tamper-resistant pads.
