|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Medicare News
Lame-Duck Congress Still Wrestling with How to
Reverse Medicare's Proposed Pay Cut for Doctors
December 6, 2006 – The long and costly battle over
Medicare proposed cut in pay to physicians was expected to be settled in
this lame-duck session of Congress but it has hit a snag – how to make
up for the lost funds if the 5.1% pay cut is reversed. Leaders in the
House and Senate seem unable to find common ground. The doctors argue
that cutting Medicare reimbursements will make it more difficult for
senior citizens to find a doctor that will accept Medicare patients.
Other studies disagree.
 House,
Senate Leaders Debate Proposals To Finance Reversal of Medicare
Physician Reimbursement Reduction
House and Senate leaders on Tuesday "struggled" to
reach an agreement on a proposal to finance the reversal of a Medicare
physician reimbursement reduction scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1,
2007,
CQ HealthBeat
reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 12/5).
| |
Related Stories |
|
| |
Medicare Issues Getting Much Attention in Closing
Days of Congress
Diabetes treatment, review of anemia medication
rules top list
December 6, 2006 – The final days of this Congress
are seeing considerable focus on Medicare issues. A group of senators
have asked Health & Human Services to make diabetes screening and
prevention a "top priority" for Medicare. Tomorrow, the House Ways and
Means Committee will consider Medicare's coverage of anemia medication
used to treat patients with end-stage renal disease. And, outside
Congress, a meeting of advocates expressed their desire to see
"patient-centered care" linked to Medicare reimbursements with
pay-for-performance measures.
Read more...
Medicare Final Rule Cuts Physician Pay Five Percent
for 2007
CMS says rule
encourages more physician-patient communication
November 3, 2006 – The 5.1 percent cut in pay for
physicians in 2007 proposed by Medicare has been reduced to something
closer to 5 percent, according to the final rule issued by the Centers
for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week. The war may not be over,
however, since the American Medical Association was still pressing
Congress to override the pay cut when they took their election recess.
(See AMA reaction in sidebar.)
Read more...
Read the latest news
on
Medicare
or
Medicare Drug Program |
|
Medicare physician reimbursements will decrease by
5.1% without congressional action during the lame-duck session, which
likely will end this week (Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report, 12/5).
According to CQ HealthBeat, a Senate aide indicated
that a "major" disagreement between House and Senate leaders involved a
proposal to use a "much bigger physician payment cut in 2008" to finance
the reversal of the reduction in 2007.
House
Ways and Means Committee Chair Bill Thomas (R-Calif.) has
proposed a Medicare physician reimbursement reduction of at least 10% in
2008 to finance the reversal of the reduction in 2007, but
Senate Finance
Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and ranking member
Max Baucus (D-Mont.) oppose the proposal, according to the Senate aide.
Senate Budget
Committee Chair Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who also opposes the
proposal, said, "Things like that are just accounting gimmicks" (CQ
HealthBeat, 12/5).
Baucus said that he and other lawmakers "are
looking closely, aggressively" at a proposal to eliminate a
stabilization fund established under the 2003 Medicare law to encourage
health insurers to offer prescription drug plans in underserved areas to
help finance the reversal of the physician reimbursement reduction.
Elimination of the stabilization fund would offset
an estimated $5.8 billion of the $10.5 billion cost over five years of
the reversal of the Medicare physician reimbursement reduction
(Vaughan/Johnson, CongressDaily, 12/6).
Other Disagreements
House and Senate leaders also disagree on whether to attach other health
care provisions to legislation that would reverse the Medicare physician
reimbursement reduction.
The House on Tuesday "appeared ready to move" on a
bill that would only reverse the Medicare physician reimbursement
reduction, "while the Senate was putting together an $18 billion
take-it-or-leave-it offer that would also provide for increased payments
to rural doctors, hospitals and home care agencies," according to a
lobbyist, CQ HealthBeat reports.
The Senate bill also would provide Medicaid funds
for individuals who leave welfare and would reverse a scheduled
reduction in Medicare rehabilitation services reimbursements.
The House and Senate likely will finalize
legislation that would reverse the Medicare physician reimbursement
reduction on Wednesday, CQ HealthBeat reports (CQ HealthBeat, 12/5).
However, passage in Senate, which likely will include the legislation in
larger tax bill, "is far from assured," CongressDaily reports (CongressDaily,
12/6).
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
