On January 1, 2013, the Senate and House of Representatives passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act, which includes a one-year fix for the Sustainable Growth Rate formula for Medicare physician payment. The single conversion factor for 2013 is zero percent, averting a 26.5 percent decrease. Also, the sequestration automatic spending decrease of two percent for Medicare has been postponed for two months. The legislation has been sent to President Obama for his signature.