• ASCP, AMA Urge Fix on Medicare Payment Reduction
ASCP joined with the American Medical Association in urging Congress to extend the current moratorium on the two percent annual reduction in Medicare fees imposed by the Medicare sequester. Set to expire on March 31, Congress imposed the current moratorium as part of the response to COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter to Congressional leadership, ASCP and the AMA asked that the moratorium be extended for the duration of the public health emergency.
• ASCP, AMA raise concerns about VHA Scope of Practice Issues
ASCP and the American Medical Association (AMA) joined forces in a Jan. 7 letter to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The letter opposes a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Interim Final Rule (IFR) that allows most Veterans Health Administration (VHA)-employed, non-physician providers (NPP) to practice outside the scope of the licensure and regardless of state scope of practice law. ASCP signed on to the letter in part due to possible impacts the VHA rule could have on laboratory testing by those with little formal training in laboratory medicine.
• AMA Releases Guide to Surprise Billing Law
The American Medical Association (AMA) recently released a
Guide to the new Surprise Billing law that signed into legislation on December 27, 2020. The new law, the No Surprises Act, allows for price transparency, provider directories, and patient financial protections that impact health plans, physicians, facilities, and other non-MD/DO licensed health care professionals. The law goes into effect on January 1, 2022. Its intent is not to preempt state surprise billing laws. However, there is some ambiguity in the statutory language that will require further clarification before and during the rulemaking process, including when the surprise billing protections apply to patients in self-funded ERISA plans.
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