January 9, 2006 -- AMA President J. Edward Hill, has released the following statement regarding the status of proposed physician payment cuts:

"The AMA applauds CMS Administrator Mark McClellan for creating a plan to quickly implement updates to the 2006 Medicare physician payment rate as soon as it becomes law. Final passage of the budget bill will stop this year's 4.4 percent cut in Medicare payments to physicians and continue 2005 payment rates.

"The AMA continues to work closely with CMS to make the update process as smooth as possible for physicians. Automatic reprocessing of claims retroactive to January 1, 2006 is a help to physician offices swimming in paperwork, and an important assurance from CMS as physicians make decisions affecting patient care.
"It is critical that Congress finish the work it began and stop the cuts immediately upon return to Washington."

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