Earlier this month, we blogged about doctors urging Congress to delay Medicare cuts. Policymakers created a payment formula for Medicare designed to make small adjustments every year to cut costs. Since then, Congress has passed short-term fixes to delay the cuts. Physicians faced a 23 percent cut in Medicare reimbursement rates starting December 1, but sources report that yesterday, Congress delayed cuts for only one month. From the AP:
“This bill is a stopgap measure to make sure that seniors and military families can continue to see their doctors during December while we work on the solution for the next year,” said Rep. Frank Pallone, R-N.J., chairman of the Energy and Commerce health subcommittee.
Health care payment formulas for military service members and veterans are tied to Medicare. President Barack Obama is urging Congress “to now pass a one-year extension to ensure seniors maintain access to the doctor they know and trust over the coming year,” the White House said in a statement.
The payment cuts are the result of a 1990s budget-balancing law that attempted, with little success, to keep Medicare spending in line. With medical groups estimating that as many as two-thirds of doctors would stop taking new Medicare patients if the cuts go into effect, Congress has had to periodically step in to stop the automatic cuts.
The patch doesn’t address long-term concerns, but staving off a 23 percent reduction in Medicare reimbursement fees undoubtedly puts physicians at ease.
