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- CAP Joins Medical Associations in Calling to Halt Scheduled Medicare Cuts
The CAP and dozens of other medical associations are calling on Congress to take immediate action to mitigate Medicare payment cuts scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2023. The recently released 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule would cut the Medicare conversion factor by approximately 4.5%. The CAP advocates to protect the value of pathology services and fights against Medicare cuts for pathologists.
The groups supported previous legislation that provided a 3% positive adjustment to the Medicare fee schedule conversion factor to partially offset a scheduled reduction. These critical payment reduction relief policies provided increased financial stability for Medicare clinicians and helped to ensure seniors-maintained access to high-quality care, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to present numerous challenges, the groups wrote in a July 27 letter to the chairs and ranking members on the Senate Finance Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
“These cuts, combined with the pending threat of the 4% PAYGO reduction, are simply not sustainable,” write the groups. “The termination of the 2% sequestration moratorium in July 2022 is yet another compounding negative financial factor Medicare providers must navigate.”
The year-over-year cuts clearly demonstrate that the Medicare physician payment system is broken, the groups said. Systemic issues, such as the negative impact of the fee schedule’s budget neutrality requirements and the lack of an inflationary update will continue to generate significant instability to health care professionals moving forward, adding that they are committed to working with Congress to identify and advance the necessary reforms.