Cardiologists speak out about reimbursement cuts, say Congress ‘left clinicians holding the bag’
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is once again urging Congress to eliminate the 3.37% cut for cardiology reimbursements included in the 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). The cut went into effect at the start of 2023, but cardiologists, electrophysiologists, cardiothoracic surgeons and other cardiovascular professionals have remained hopeful a deal could still be made to retroactively cancel it.
Congress did pass a new continuing resolution Thursday, Jan. 18, that helped the United States avoid a government shutdown for at least a few more months, and President Joe Biden signed the stopgap document the very next day. However, this latest agreement only ensured federal agencies have the funding they need through the beginning of March—and it did not cancel out the Medicare cuts U.S. physicians have been fighting for over the last several months.
“Less than three weeks into the new year, Congress has already left clinicians holding the bag again on Medicare payment reform,” ACC President B. Hadley Wilson, MD, a practicing interventional cardiologist and executive vice chair at Sanger Heart and Vascular Institute/Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina, said in a statement. “By not including a fix to the 3.37% cut to the MPFS in the most recent continuing resolution, practices around the country are left in a state of uncertainty for their own futures, as well as patient access to care. While it is critical that Congress was able to pass a continuing resolution, offering certainty for many vital services, I am disappointed that clinicians and patients within Medicare will continue to be left out and left behind.”
According to the ACC, Medicare physician reimbursements have dropped by 26% in the last 20 years, but practice expenses have increased by 47%. The group, along with many other U.S. medical societies, is fighting to increase support for the Preserving Seniors’ Access to Physicians Act.
“The ACC will continue to press members of Congress to pass the Preserving Seniors’ Access to Physicians Act of 2023 and ensure all can receive necessary, high quality medical care,” Wilson added. “We must achieve this short-term, but crucial, fix so we can all focus on advancing long-term reforms to the current Medicare system.”
The group that often leads efforts to push Congress for better reimbursement policies, the American Medical Association, issued its own statement about the most recently passed continuing resolution.
“Failure to reverse these cuts will create access issues for patients and small, independent physician practices, especially those in rural and underserved areas,” according to AMA President Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD. “Physicians are the only providers who have a payment cut this year and now face a nearly 10% reduction in Medicare payments over the past four years.”
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.