Members of Congress Urge Leaders to Act to Protect Patient Access to Surgical Care and Stop Medicare Cuts
A group of 229 Representatives sent a letter yesterday to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy urging them to protect patients by stopping Medicare cuts impacting physicians across the country.
The bipartisan letter outlines the impact these cuts will have on the healthcare system and calls for Congress to act to stop them from taking effect on January 1, 2021.
“Payment cuts of this magnitude will surely strain a health care system that is already stressed by the COVID-19 pandemic and could jeopardize patient access to medically necessary services,” Reps. Bera and Bucshon said in a Surgical Care Coalition news release. “In order to safeguard beneficiaries’ access to care during this pandemic, we as Congress should examine possible bipartisan solutions to address excessively steep cuts. We encourage you to incorporate the resulting policy changes in any upcoming legislation moving through the House.”
Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a new Medicare Physician Fee Schedule set to take effect in the new year, which will cut Medicare payments for surgical care by up to 9 percent for some specialties.
“This rule would be harmful without COVID-19 but is especially reckless given the pandemic and will force surgeons around the country to make tough decisions. In some cases, surgeons may have to decide between keeping their practice open and cutting costs like new staff, Medicare patient intake, and new surgical technologies,” the representatives stated.
The Surgical Care Coalition (SCC) represents more than 150,000 surgeons across the country and is advocating Congress to stop these cuts due to the impact on patients. A recent survey of more than 1,000 members of the American College of Surgeons found that nearly one third of surgeons surveyed said they will have to reduce their Medicare patient intake because of the cuts. In addition, one in five surgeons say they may need to stop performing certain procedures to reduce costs as a result of these cuts.
The SCC has also advocated against the cuts because of the COVID-19 pandemic saying now is not the time to be cutting Medicare payments. A survey conducted earlier this year found one-in-three private practice surgeons may already have to shut down their practices as a result of the impact of COVID-19.
“As physicians themselves, Reps. Bera and Bucshon understand the challenges the healthcare system is facing as a result of this pandemic, and that now is not the time to create further obstacles to patients’ access to surgical care by cutting Medicare payments to physicians,” said David Glasser, MD, American Academy of Ophthalmology Academy Secretary for Federal Affairs. “We thank Representatives Bera and Bucshon for their leadership and support on this issue to ensure older Americans do not see their care jeopardized as a result of these cuts.”