ENTtoday
  • Home
  • COVID-19
  • Practice Focus
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Departments
    • Issue Archive
    • TRIO Best Practices
      • Allergy
      • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
      • Head and Neck
      • Laryngology
      • Otology/Neurotology
      • Pediatric
      • Rhinology
      • Sleep Medicine
    • Career Development
    • Case of the Month
    • Everyday Ethics
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Medical Education
    • Online Exclusives
    • Practice Management
    • Resident Focus
    • Rx: Wellness
    • Special Reports
    • Tech Talk
    • Viewpoint
    • What’s Your O.R. Playlist?
  • Literature Reviews
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Events
    • Featured Events
    • TRIO Meetings
  • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Editorial Board
    • Triological Society
    • Advertising Staff
    • Subscribe
  • Advertise
    • Place an Ad
    • Classifieds
    • Rate Card
  • Search

Medicare Meltdown: Congress Seeks Payment Formula Fix

by Geri Aston • January 1, 2010

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version

Medical groups now are focused on a stand-alone Medicare physician payment reform bill sponsored by Rep. John D. Dingell, D-Mich. The measure is supported by the AMA, the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS), and more than 100 other physician organizations. It would make the 2010 physician payment update equal to the increase in the Medicare Economic Index, a measure of inflation. That would translate into a 1.2 percent increase.

You Might Also Like

  • Medicare Physician Payment Cut Averted
  • Physician Groups Set 2011 Agenda: Medicare payment reform tops the list
  • Payment Limbo: Medical societies take on SGR reform
  • IPAB is Medicare’s New Hammer for Spending Accountability
Explore This Issue
January 2010

The bill, H.R. 3961, also would change the baseline on which the payment formula is computed. This would create a clean slate for future payment update calculations, thus wiping away the “debt” caused by the current formula.

The legislation would create two new spending targets, one for evaluation and management and preventive services and the other for all remaining services. The target growth rate for evaluation and management (E&M) and preventive services would be the gross domestic product plus 2 percent, while the target for other services would be GDP plus 1 percent. The change would reduce the likelihood of future physician payment cuts because the target growth rates would be more generous, according to the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

A Temporary Fix

click for large version
A Temporary Fix

Senate Effort Fails

On the Senate side, a stand-alone Medicare physician payment bill in October failed on a procedural vote. That measure would have repealed the SGR formula and set future Medicare physician payment updates at zero. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., would have laid “the foundation for establishing a new Medicare physician payment update system through health system reform or other legislation,” according to the AMA.

At press time, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., was still working on merging health system reform bills passed earlier this year by the Senate Finance Committee and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. The Finance Committee bill contains several Medicare payment provisions that trouble physician organizations. Its 0.5 percent Medicare physician payment increase in 2010 falls short of permanent repeal of the flawed formula.

Another temporary increase would amount to lawmakers kicking the problem down the road again, Dr. Kuppersmith said. A 0.5 percent increase, like the past temporary payment fixes, would not keep up with costs, he said. “It’s still a pay cut because my utility bill goes up. I have to give employees cost of living increases. None of my costs are coming down, and they’re all going up more than 0.5 percent,” said Dr. Kuppersmith, who is president of the AAO-HNS Board of Directors.

Pages: 1 2 3 | Single Page

Filed Under: Departments, Health Policy, Practice Management Tagged With: billing and coding, healthcare reform, insurance, Medicare, policy, politics, reimbursementIssue: January 2010

You Might Also Like:

  • Medicare Physician Payment Cut Averted
  • Physician Groups Set 2011 Agenda: Medicare payment reform tops the list
  • Payment Limbo: Medical societies take on SGR reform
  • IPAB is Medicare’s New Hammer for Spending Accountability

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

The Laryngoscope
Ensure you have all the latest research at your fingertips; Subscribe to The Laryngoscope today!

Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
Open access journal in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery is currently accepting submissions.

Classifieds

View the classified ads »

TRIO Best Practices

View the TRIO Best Practices »

Top Articles for Residents

  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Why More MDs, Medical Residents Are Choosing to Pursue Additional Academic Degrees
  • What Physicians Need to Know about Investing Before Hiring a Financial Advisor
  • Tips to Help You Regain Your Sense of Self
  • Should USMLE Step 1 Change from Numeric Score to Pass/Fail?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • Experts Delve into Treatment Options for Laryngopharyngeal Reflux
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Weaning Patients Off of PPIs
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • New Developments in the Management of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • Eustachian Tuboplasty: A Potential New Option for Chronic Tube Dysfunction and Patulous Disease
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Podcasts Becoming More Popular Method of Education for Otolaryngologists
    • How to Embrace Optimism in the Midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic
    • Tips on How to Approach Conversations with Patients about the COVID-19 Vaccine
    • Steps You Should Take to Protect Your Voice and Hearing During Telemedicine Sessions
    • Routine Postoperative Adjunct Treatments Unnecessary for Idiopathic Cerebrospinal Fluid Leaks

Polls

Have you spoken with your patients about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Visit: The Triological Society • The Laryngoscope • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology

Wiley
© 2021 The Triological Society. All Rights Reserved.
ISSN 1559-4939

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.