Congress looks to eliminate most Medicare physician pay cuts

The Senate is expected to soon vote on a bipartisan bill that has already passed the House of Representatives eliminating most of the Medicare physician pay cuts scheduled to go into effect at the end of the year.

According to the Medical Group Management Association, the legislation would:

• Mitigate 3% of the -3.75% impact of the previously delayed 2021 budget neutrality adjustment to the Medicare physician fee schedule conversion factor through CY 2022;

• Nullify the imposition of the 4% statutory pay-as-you-go sequester resulting from the American Rescue Plan Act through CY 2022;
• Delay and phase in reinstatement of the existing 2% Medicare sequester through June 2022; and
• Delay cuts to physician office laboratories and the next round of data reporting.

These changes would eliminate 9% of the 9.75% planned Medicare payment reductions to physician practices scheduled for Jan. 1, 2022.

The Protecting Medicare & American Farmers from Sequester Cuts Act passed the House December 7.

Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal, D-MA, said in a statement: "Our nation's health care providers have had their limits tested time and time again throughout the pandemic, and with this legislation, we will save them from harmful cuts to the Medicare payments on which they rely."