Congress acted on Friday, December 23, to avert the 27% cut in Medicare payments to doctors that would have become effective on January 1, 2012. The House of Representatives has passed by unanimous consent an amended version of a Senate bill that extended the current rates of Medicare payments for the first two months of 2012. These provisions were a part of a larger package that included extensions of payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits. President Obama announced that he will sign the bill into law.
Since this measure delays the cuts for only two months, the Congress will have to address the so-called “doc-fix” again before the end of February 2012. It remains unclear whether the members of Congress will be able to agree on a long term solution to the SGR issue at that time.
The AANEM will continue to monitor the Congressional actions affecting this issue and provide our members with timely updates. If you have any questions, please contact the AANEM policy department at policy@aanem.org.