Medical Societies Submit Letter to U.S. Congress on Proposed Physician Payment

On September 26, 2022, ISASS and dozens of other medical societies, in conjunction with the American Medical Association, sent a letter to Congress urging them to take action during the lame duck session following mid-term elections. The letters call for both House and Senate leaders to address and help offset the financial instability that Medicare physician payment policies will bring to practices throughout the nation in the coming year if payment cuts go into effect.

Specifically, the letter asks Congress to do the following prior to the scheduled Medicare payment cuts taking effect in 2023:

• Extend the congressionally enacted 3% temporary increase in the Medicare physician fee schedule that was intended to offset budget neutrality adjustments for new office visit policies.
• Provide relief for an additional 1.42% budget neutrality cut that is planned for 2023 to offset new facility visit policies.
• End the statutory annual freeze and provide an inflation-based update for the coming year.
• Prevent a scheduled 5% payment cut for Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs) and the corresponding impossible-to-meet revenue threshold increase at the end of 2022.
• Waive the 4% PAYGO sequester triggered by passage of the American Rescue Plan Act.

To read the letter, please see attached PDF

To  read the American Medical Association article on the letter, see here.