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- New bill would stop Medicare cuts to physician pay
A new bill in Congress would pause Medicare payment cuts and help ensure fair, stable compensation for physicians.
The CAP is urging lawmakers to pass the Efficiency Adjustment Delay Act (HR 7520). The bill would stop the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) efficiency adjustment policy until 2030.
The impact: The bill would protect physicians from payment cuts tied to an untested efficiency policy and help preserve patient access to care.
- It would give CMS and Congress time to reassess the data behind the efficiency adjustment.
- It would help stabilize practice finances during ongoing workforce and inflation pressures.
The big picture: CMS based its efficiency policy on studies that examined only a narrow slice of physician services and left out pathology-specific data.
- There is no evidence from these analyses to justify lowering payment for pathology or any other physician services.
Key provisions: The bipartisan bill, introduced by Rep. Ron Estes (R-KS) and Thomas Souzzi (D-NY), would:
- Set a pause to reevaluate the assumptions behind CMS’s efficiency adjustment.
- Direct development of a more evidence-based approach that protects patient access.
- Include safeguards intended to hold primary care harmless from the positive payment adjustment triggered by budget neutrality.
Go deeper: The CAP joined more than 20 medical organizations in signing a letter backing the bill.