Congress, AMA Mull Better Ways for Medicare to Pay Doctors

Congress, AMA Mull Better Ways for Medicare to Pay Doctors.

The way Medicare pays doctors is a mess. Every year or so, an automatic pay cut looms, and Congress scrambles to come up with a last-minute, temporary patch to block the cuts. The most recent scramble ended in July, when Congress overrode a presidential veto to pass a patch that runs through the end of next year.

Everybody knows this is a silly way to run things, but nobody’s managed to come up with a better alternative. At hearing in Congress yesterday, a few key players tried to move in that direction.

Several key figures are trying to make some changes.

Cut in reimbursements for medicare

With physician reimbursements set to drop 10 percent, doctors will begin evaluating whether to stay with Medicare.

Senate Republicans blocked action last week on Democratic-backed legislation that would have averted the fee cut by instead reducing payments to insurers that provide benefits through Medicare Advantage plans. Republicans said that the insurer cuts, which the House approved, were too deep and that the Bush administration had threatened to veto the measure. Congress is set to be in recess until July 7.