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AMA, ACR, Others Say Medicare Cuts Will Impact Access to Care
A newly passed bill permits 2.8% Medicare physician payment cuts.
Medical associations including American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and American Medical Association (AMA), and others have decried Medicare pay cuts, which were allowed and not addressed in a funding bill signed on Saturday.1,2,3,4,5
“It is extremely disheartening that once again Congress has let down our nation’s physicians and our seniors by failing to address the devastating payment cuts that have cumulated into an effective 33% cut since 2001,” Carol Langford, MD, MHS, president of the ACR said in a statement.3 “Members of Congress cannot continue to ignore the economic issues doctors are facing, pay less than the cost of care, and hope that patients are not negatively impacted.”
Clinicians say the 2.8% payment cut will lead to closing practices and limit access to care for elderly patients, especially in rural areas.1 The bill, which was released by the U.S. House of Representatives before being passed 54-46 in the Republican-controlled Senate to keep federal agencies running through Sept 30.
“Congress has failed physicians, and Medicare patients will pay the price. The window to reverse this reckless decision is rapidly closing. Lawmakers must explain either why protecting access to quality health care is not a priority or how they plan to fix it,” Bruce A. Scott, MD, President of the AMA, said.4
Scott also pointed out that the package also reduced funding to biomedical research in the Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program from $1.5 billion to $650 million. The AMA statement acknowledged the extensions included for telehealth flexibilities but reiterated that the pay cuts will continue to exacerbate care access issues, especially pointing out that the research cuts will impact efforts to prevent arthritis from continuing to force early retirements for armed service members, which is the second leading cause of medical discharged from the US Army.
Over 110 national and state medical groups had appealed in vain to Congress for an easing of this cut through the Continuing Resolution, including the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) and the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).
“Millions of Americans rely on policies that ensure they can breathe clean air, access affordable care and innovative treatments, and receive critical accommodations in schools,” Kenneth Mendez, AAFA President and CEO.5 “These rollbacks threaten not only the health and safety of our community but also our economy by driving up healthcare costs and leading to more missed work and school days. AAFA will continue to fight for these protections and ensure that our community’s needs are heard.”
Rep. Greg Murphy, MD (R-NC), the co-chair of the GOP Doctors Caucus, has stated that work will be done to try and mitigate the cuts.6
"Congress' failure to address the 2025 Medicare fee schedule in the recently passed Continuing Resolution is a direct betrayal of Medicare beneficiaries and a significant frustration to health care providers, including physical therapists," APTA President Kyle Covington, PT, DPT, in a statement to APTA members.2 "The promise made by congressional leaders to address the fee schedule in the upcoming budget reconciliation offers no relief to the immediate crisis facing health care providers today."
