WASHINGTON – The American Medical Association is hoping – along with many other medical societies and their physician members – to convince Congress that it should repeal Medicare’s Sustainable Growth Rate formula before the end of the year.
The cost to do so is a relative bargain, and physicians have grown tired of trying to plan around a process that is predictable, yet unpredictable, according to AMA President Robert M. Wah. Why not move now, he wondered, given that there was so much progress in this Congress, including a bill that was passed by the House?
In an exclusive video interview, Dr. Wah talked about the pressing need for the SGR replacement, along with what Republican majorities in both the House and Senate in the incoming Congress might mean to physicians.
Some Republicans have said that they will press for a partial or total repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Dr. Wah touched on whether the AMA supports any part of that notion, including getting rid of the Independent Payment Advisory Board, known as the IPAB.
Dr. Wah also discussed another urgent topic: What to do about the expiring element of the ACA that gave primary care physicians who treat Medicaid patients the same rate of pay as those who serve Medicare beneficiaries. The AMA recently reiterated its position that the so-called pay bump – which ends Dec. 31 – should be extended, and that it also should include obstetricians and gynecologists, who were left out of the initial policy.
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