Congress Protects Patients and Delays Medicare Payment Cuts; Still More Work to Be Done
By Admin | January 13, 2021
Congress voted to protect patients' access to surgical care by delaying steep Medicare payment cuts from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that it included in the 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), according to the Surgical Care Coalition.
"Congress rightly prioritized patients by rejecting CMS's disastrous Medicare payment cuts," said John A. Wilson, MD, FAANS, FACS, President of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. "COVID-19 has pushed our health care system to the brink, and physicians fighting on the front lines will not have this misguided policy hanging over their heads. There is still work to do to ensure patients have timely access to surgical care in 2022 and beyond, but this is a significant step in the right direction."
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, passed by Congress late Monday prevents significant Medicare cuts by increasing all Medicare payment codes by 3.75 percent for 2021 and delaying an add-on code for three years.
If Congress did not make these changes, the MPFS would cut Medicare payments to some surgical specialties by up to nine percent. The cuts were set to take effect on January 1, 2021.
"Congressional leaders recognized it is...(More)
For more information please read, Congress Protects Patients and Delays Medicare Payment Cuts; Still More Work to Be Done, by PRNewswire
