The Continuing
Extension Act of 2010, enacted on April 15, 2010, provided another temporary
patch to maintain physician payment levels until the end of May. While the House and Senate leaders are working
to fix the problematic sustainable growth formula, the Senate left town for the
week-long Memorial Day Congressional recess without enacting a fix to this
years-long problem. The House did pass a 19 month fix before its holiday
recess.
The SGR provisions in the new
proposal under discussion include a 2.2 percent Medicare physician payment
update for the remainder of 2010, a 1 percent update for 2011, and a return to
the current SGR formula in 2012-which will result in an estimated 33 percent
payment cut that year.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
believes Congress is working to avert the negative update scheduled to take
effect June 1, 2010. To avoid disruption in the delivery of health care
services to beneficiaries and payment of claims, CMS has instructed its
contractors to hold claims containing services paid under the Physician Fee
Schedule for the first 10 business days of June.
ACRO continues to
work with the AMA and others to develop a long term fix to the problematic sustainable
growth formula.
|
