In the last SGR fix, reached in the January deal to avert the “fiscal cliff,” lawmakers pushed almost half of the $30 billion bill onto hospitals to supplement Medicare payments to physicians.
GOP representatives urged instead for structural reforms to Medicare to foot the bill, including altering premiums for Medicare Parts A, B and D, according to the report. The politicians implied the time is ripe for such changes as they are likely to be less politically onerous now that the Congressional Budget Office projected the cost of an SGR repeal to be $107 billion cheaper than previously expected.
More Articles on the Sustainable Growth Rate:
Panel: Fix SGR by Cutting Increased Medicare Payments for Hospital Services
ASA Gives SGR Feedback to Lawmakers
Defining a New Healthcare Conversation: Q&A With Former CMS Administrator Dr. Bruce Vladeck
