For the first time, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has recommended Congress provide a physician payment update that is tied to the Medicare Economic Index (MEI). MedPAC, a Congressional advisory agency, outlined the recommendation in its
March 15 Report to Congress.
In response, the AMA, ASCP, and more than 130 other physician groups outlined support for MedPAC’s proposal in a letter to congressional leadership. The letter emphasized that MedPAC’s recommendation is an important step toward an annual inflation-based update for Medicare physician payment, which is necessary to improve the financial stability of physician practices—particularly considering today’s high rate of inflation.
However, the AMA, ASCP and other signatories of the letter argued that MedPAC’s recommendation falls short as its only recommends updating Medicare physician payment rates by half of the MEI, which fails to cover all practice costs encountered by physician practices. The letter urges congressional leaders to provide a full inflation-based annual payment update tied to the MEI to address the “perennial issue of Medicare physician underpayment.” It also notes that per enrollee inflation-adjusted Medicare Fee Schedule spending has been flat or declining from 2011-2021.
ASCP will continue to work with the AMA and other physician organizations to ensure physicians are adequately compensated for their work. For a copy of this letter, click
here.
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