WASHINGTON, D.C. — The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed H.R. 6545, the “Physician Fee Schedule Update and Improvements Act,” out of committee. The legislation makes improvements to the physician fee schedule under the Medicare program. The legislation was introduced by U.S. Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01), Larry Bucshon, M.D. (IN-08), Kim Schrier (WA-08), Robin Kelly (IL-02), Ami Bera, M.D. (CA-06), Brad Wenstrup (OH-2), Raul Ruiz, M.D. (CA-25), Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (TX-26), Greg Murphy, M.D. (NC-03), and Tony Cárdenas (CA-29).

“The current structure of the physician fee schedule does not provide sustainable, reliable and consistent payment rates for physicians who see Medicare beneficiaries,” said Miller-Meeks, M.D. “These cuts, especially when the costs to practice have markedly increased, further strain our nation’s doctors, limiting patient access to care. Each year, doctors routinely face harmful payment cuts making it increasingly difficult to remain in practice and accept Medicare patients, which is worsened in rural areas like Southeastern Iowa. I am proud to introduce the ‘Physician Fee Schedule Update and Improvements Act’ and will continue to work to stabilize adequate payment rates to keep providers in practice and increase access to quality care that seniors can afford.”

“Patients and the health care providers who care for them are left to deal with the uncertainty of CMS cuts to provider reimbursement rates each year. These annual cuts have become a sad tradition from CMS and forces many providers who serve in rural areas where there is a large Medicare population to shutter their doors,” said Wenstrup, D.P.M. “As a physician, I am proud to co-lead this bill that addresses some of the upcoming cuts providers are facing while also providing long term solutions to bring more stability and certainty to physician reimbursement.”

“The Physician Fee Schedule Updates and Improvement Act will allow doctors to keep their doors open to underserved and under resourced patients and ensure our seniors continue to receive the care they deserve,” said Ruiz, M.D.

“The existing physician fee schedule structure fuels uncertainty for American doctors, creating significant challenges in practicing amidst soaring inflation. The imminent pay cuts further exacerbate the situation, causing small and independent practices to struggle to keep their doors open,” said Burgess, M.D. “The Physician Fee Schedule Update and Improvements Act is crucial for stabilizing payments and preserving the provider-patient relationship. This is the first time the Energy and Commerce Committee has marked up a short-term change to address physician payment along with a long-term structural update to budget neutrality. These changes modernize physician payment, vital for independent practitioners nationwide, balancing the need for immediate action with long-term solutions."

“Physicians across the country, who treat Medicare patients out of the goodness of their hearts, continue to be crushed by Medicare reimbursement cuts by bureaucrats in Washington. I am point-blank fed up with this nonsense” said Murphy, M.D. “Rural communities have been overwhelmingly impacted by these cuts over the years. This bipartisan legislation takes aim at some of the harmful cuts set to burden physicians come January 1st.”

“There is a staffing crisis in our health care system that is a danger for patients,” said Cárdenas. “Cuts to resources that health care providers rely on limit a doctor’s ability to provide quality care, contribute to high burnout rates, and make it more difficult for Americans to find care in a timely manner. This bill prevents existential cuts and ensures practices are stable and doctors have the resources they need to keep seniors healthy.”

Background:
The “Physician Fee Schedule Update and Improvements Act” was introduced in December.

Increasing the budget neutrality from $20 million to $53 million would allow for greater flexibility in determining pricing adjustments for services without leading to harmful payment cuts for doctors. Because the payment structure is budget neutral, doctors regularly face cuts when certain services receive payment increases.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) did not update supply and equipment prices between 2005-2019 and also did not update clinical staff wage rates between 2002-2022. While CMS did eventually update payment rates, incremental increases would have allowed doctors to plan better. This bill brings needed stabilization to reimbursement and updates the formula to reflect accurate costs of running a medical practice.