How would the proposed 2023 MPFS impact your cardiology practice? Use this free tool to find out
When the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) shared its proposed 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) in July, healthcare organizations throughout the United States shared their displeasure.
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) was one of the many societies unhappy with the proposed MPFS, calling it “the continuation of a troubling trend” and noting that payments to cardiologists would be cut by approximately 1%.
“The confluence of conversion factor cuts, statutory cuts on the horizon from sequestration and PAYGO rules, and a 0% payment update that fails to account for significant inflation in practice costs creates long-term financial instability in the Medicare physician payment system,” the ACC said at the time. “By working in concert with other medical societies, the ACC was able to forestall these cuts last year. The 2023 MPFS makes clear the need to redouble efforts to ensure patient access to Medicare-participating physicians and services is not threatened.”
Calculate the proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule’s impact
Now, the ACC has shared a helpful tool for any cardiologists or practice managers who want to see how the proposed MPFS could impact their bottom line. The new 2023 MPFS calculator is available here.
“In response to the recently released 2023 MPFS proposed rule, the ACC has developed a new Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule Calculator to allow clinicians and practice managers to estimate the potential impact of changes to practice,” the group said. “Of note, many services see significant impacts due to the reduced conversion factor adjustment required by law to offset increases in other areas or other formulaic changes, such as increases in pricing of clinical staff labor.”
Other medical societies also upset about the proposal
The American Medical Association (AMA) and Radiology Business Management Association (RBMA) were two of the other societies that spoke up about the CMS proposal.
“It is immediately apparent that the rule not only fails to account for inflation in practice costs and COVID-related challenges to practice sustainability, but also includes a significant and damaging across-the-board reduction in payment rates,” AMA President Jack Resneck, MD, said in a statement. “Such a move would create long-term financial instability in the Medicare physician payment system and threaten patient access to Medicare-participating physicians. We will be working with Congress to prevent this harmful outcome.”
RBMA Executive Director Bob Still, meanwhile, warned that the proposed MPFS could “do incalculable damage to the medical profession” and “hurt the most vulnerable populations.” A full video interview with Still about the proposal is available here.
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.