Endocrine Insider 
May 26, 2010

(See Full Issue)

The House of Representatives is expected to vote this week on HR 4213, a tax extenders bill that includes provisions to update the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) and freeze the 21.2 percent payment cut scheduled to go into effect on June 1. The bill would provide a 1.3 percent update to physician payments for the rest of 2010, and a 1 percent increase for 2011. Rates could not be reduced in 2012 and 2013, and some additional increases for Evaluation and Management (E&M) and preventive care services will be available during these two years. Congress has passed multiple short-term freezes to physician payment this year in the anticipation of a longer-term fix in the near future.

Proponents of the bill say that a full repeal of the SGR, the cause of annual threats to physician payment, is not feasible at this time due to concerns about the cost of the repeal. Their hope is that with more than three years to work on the issue, Congress may ultimately pass a full repeal of the SGR and implement a formula that will appropriately pay physicians for their work. Opponents of the bill say that waiting longer to repeal the payment formula will only make it more difficult as the cost of paying for the cuts continues to increase.

Stay tuned to Endocrine Insider for additional updates as they become available.