Endocrine Insider
April 15, 2010

(See Full Issue)

Prior to the spring recess, Congress had passed a number of measures to extend until April 1 the physician pay freeze that was to go into effect at the beginning of the year (for more details see previous issues of Endocrine Insider). The House also passed separate legislation in March that would have extended the freeze on payment reductions until April 30 (H.R. 4851).  This bill was not addressed by the Senate prior to its spring recess, and as a result, the 21.2 percent cut to physician payments took effect at the beginning of this month. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) instructed its contractors to hold all claims submitted beginning April 1 for an additional 10 business days in order to give Congress time to return from the break and complete work on a physician payment freeze.

The Senate resumed its business on April 12 and promptly took up H.R. 4851 taking procedural steps to limit debate and budgetary restrictions so that the bill could move forward. An amendment was introduced earlier this week by Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) that extends the physician payment freeze until May 31. The Senate is expected to approve the bill this week, after which it will be returned to the House for final approval. 

The Endocrine Society continues to press Congress for a permanent fix to the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, which underlies the recurring physician payment cuts. Stay tuned to future issues of Endocrine Insider for new developments.