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Congress Now Focusing on a Short-Term SGR Patch
Congressional leaders are now negotiating a short-term reprieve from the looming 27% cut in Medicare payments, as an alternative to the two-year patch that was proposed by Republicans a week ago,...
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Senate Approves Two-Month Freeze of Medicare Fees
By a lopsided 89-10 vote, the Senate approved a bill on Saturday morning that would freeze physicians’ Medicare fees at current levels for two months, temporarily averting a devastating 27% cut....
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House Rebuffs Senate; 27% Medicare Payment Cut Likely
In a bitter, emotional vote today, the U.S. House rejected a Senate bill that would have blocked the 27 percent Medicare reimbursement cut scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1. The bill would have also...
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In Shift, House Now Agrees to Two-Month SGR Fix
UPDATED: 6:17 p.m. That two-month freeze of physician Medicare rates has returned from the dead. Late this afternoon, House Speaker John Boehner announced that the House will pass a two-month freeze of...
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It’s Official: Congress Freezes Medicare Payments for Two Months
Under enormous political pressure inside and outside its ranks, House Republicans Friday morning reversed themselves and passed a two-month freeze of the 27 percent cut in Medicare physician fees. The...
View ArticleThink Medicare Payments Aren’t Changing? Think Again
The AMA reminded physicians yesterday that even though the 27 percent cut in Medicare payments has been blocked for two months, there are still changes coming to some Medicare fees. Here’s what the AMA...
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Physician Groups Disappointed by Temporary Medicare Rate Patch
Physician groups expressed disappointment today over a House and Senate conference committee proposal that would delay by 10 months, but not permanently fix, a scheduled 27.4 percent cut to Medicare...
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AMA to Physicians: Prepare for the Worst
The American Medical Association today told physicians to start preparing for a 27% cut in Medicare payment rates, after concluding that the deficit talks on Capitol Hill are “at an impasse.” The AMA...
View ArticleSenate Bill Would Block Medicare Payment Cut
Updated Jan 1 9:00 p.m. Early this morning, the U.S. Senate approved “fiscal cliff” bill that includes a postponement of the 27% cut in physicians’ Medicare fees for one year. If the House passes the...
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House Vote Blocks Medicare Payment Cut For One More Year
Once again displaying the brinkmanship that was its hallmark, the 112th Congress finally passed legislation Tuesday night to avert the “fiscal cliff” for at least two more months, and blocked a...
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Medicare Rates for 2013: Implications for Practices
Following action by Congress on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, all services for Medicare patients provided after Jan. 1, 2013 will be reimbursed at 2012 rates. However, the CMS fee schedule – as of today – still...
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Deadline to Request Exemption from Federal ePrescribing Penalty is Jan. 31
Physicians who were unable to file for a Medicare ePrescribing hardship exemption by the original deadline have until Jan. 31 to avoid the 1.5 percent payment penalty in 2013. The Centers for Medicare...
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The President’s Podium: Getting Closer to a Medicare Payment Fix
by Ronald Dunlap, M.D., President, Massachusetts Medical Society Mention “SGR” to physicians and you can almost see and feel the tension and level of frustration. For nearly a dozen years, this...
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House and Senate Committees Approve Bills to Repeal the SGR
The House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee today separately approved bills that would repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) Medicare physician payment formula, and replace...
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House Schedules a Thursday Vote on Another Medicare Patch; AMA Urges No Vote
With the debate about how to fund a bipartisan bill repealing the Medicare physician payment formula stalled, the House is set to vote Thursday morning on a bill to extend the current payment formula...
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Over Protests, House Passes One-Year Extension to Medicare Payment Formula
Despite strong protests from much of organized medicine, the U.S. House today approved – without a roll call – a one-year extension of the current Medicare payment formula. The Senate is expected to...
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Senate Extends Medicare Payment “Patch” for One Year
The Senate today approved a one-year extension of the current Medicare payment formula, rejecting a last-ditch effort by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to replace it with a permanent repeal of the entire...
View ArticleRecapping a Busy Year: MMS Health Care Advocacy in 2014
Ronald W. Dunlap, MD, president of the Massachusetts Medical Society, kicked off the Society’s 2014 Annual Meeting with a review of five significant advocacy issues from the 2013-14 year: Medicare...
View ArticleU.S. House Makes History, Votes to Repeal Medicare SGR Payment Formula
In a historic move, the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Thursday in favor of repealing the flawed Medicare physician payment formula by a vote of 392-37. All Massachusetts members...
View ArticleMedicare Initiates Plans to Pay Claims With 21% Cut
UPDATE: 10:30 a.m., 4/16/15 The Senate repealed the SGR on the evening of April 14. However, because the bill has not yet been signed, a small number of claims are being processed at the reduced rate,...
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