March 27, 2014 – Special Alert

 

House passes one-year SGR patch 
Today the House of Representatives passed by voice vote H.R. 4302, which would temporarily delay the 24% cut to Medicare physician payments resulting from the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula for one year. MGMA has joined with physician organizations in Washington to continue

  • Replacing the scheduled 21.5 percent reduction in 2010 Medicare physician payments with a 0.5 percent increase;
  • Requiring that all eligible health professionals participate in Medicare’s Physician Quality Reporting Initiative by 2011;
  • Creating a 10 percent bonus payment for primary-care and general-surgery providers who practice in health professional shortage areas. Funding for this five-year bonus,