A Necessary Lame Duck Fix for Medicare

Another “lame duck” political season is upon us.
 
This is the point where some try to shoehorn their pet bill into any available vehicle, while others are doing everything they can to stave off the passage of a bill they dread. But, in fact, usually nothing happens in a lame duck session except absolutely necessary omnibus funding bills or tax extenders, because legislators are more than ready to move on from current frustrations and try again next January.
 
This lame duck, however, there is a critical need to pass a fix to Medicare’s physician reimbursement system, since an automatic cut in payments to physicians takes effect January 1^st.
 
You might not have much sympathy for doctors taking a pay cut. But it’s Medicare patients, and the Medicare system itself, that face disaster if the automatic cuts aren’t addressed.
 
Doctors across the country are still recoiling from the 2024 round of Medicare physician pay cuts. As a result, many physician practices—particularly smaller, independent ones operating in rural and other underserved areas— face insurmountable financial challenges that make it more and more difficult to keep their doors open.

Problems within the Medicare physician payment system are not new. However, they have gotten worse in recent years as the Baby Boomers age. Policymakers must get to work to address longstanding issues that threaten to destabilize Medicare.
 
Unlike all other Medicare provider types, including hospitals, hospices, and skilled nursing centers, physicians are the only ones who do not receive annual, inflation-based Medicare payment updates. As a result, many independent physicians and smaller practices feel they have little choice but to limit the number of Medicare patients they serve, or to stop seeing Medicare patients altogether.
 
Long term, Congress needs to pass long-term reform of the Medicare Physician Fee System (MPFS) to help stabilize the system. But right now, in the next five weeks, Congress can begin the process by preventing a further automatic cut in MPFS payments on January 1^st.
 
Medicare is a flawed program, and IPI has lots of ideas on how to fix the system. But if we do nothing, pressure will build to replace it with Medicare for All or a similar socialized health care scheme. A growing number of seniors will need care in the future as Americans live longer and the Baby Boomer Generation continues to age. Lawmakers need to protect physician practices, and increase patient access, and help keep our entire healthcare system strong. Instead of ceding the issue to Big Government progressives who call for socialized medicine, our leaders in Washington must fix the broken MPFS to strengthen Medicare for years to come.