fixmedicarenow.org Open in urlscan Pro
2620:12a:8000::4  Public Scan

Form analysis
0 forms found in the DOM

Text Content

Skip to main content
 * History
 * News
 * Resources
 * Get Involved
   * Take Action
   * Share Your Story
   * Social Media Toolkit

The looming Medicare physician payment cut threatens the future of physician
practices and patient access to care. Congress has an opportunity to do
something about it - tell them to take action before it's too late!

Medicare's Physician Payment System: It’s Time for Long-Term Solutions

We’ve been on the road fighting for Medicare physician payment reform for well
over a decade, and the system remains on an unsustainable path. Temporary
patches and ongoing cuts to the Medicare physician payment system have left
physician practices and patient access to care at serious risk. Payment cuts,
freezes and redistributions have further exacerbated the challenge, yet Congress
and the administration are still not focused on fixing the root of the
problem—the payment system itself. But it’s time for that to change. It's
essential that leaders in Washington work with the physician community on
immediate, preventative measures, as well as long-term solutions that will
reform the payment model once and for all.

A History of Threats

For years, the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula’s threats of
payment cuts resulted in instability for both practices and patients. While the
Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) offered some progress in
response, it lacked key components such as an annual inflationary update and
adequate support for small and rural practices. Today, physicians are the only
Medicare providers who do not receive an annual inflationary update. In fact,
since 2001, Medicare physician payments have lagged 29% behind the rate of
inflation growth. More than two decades of stagnant payment rates is
unacceptable. Practice costs and consumer prices have increased while Medicare
physician pay has declined. 

More recently, in 2021 many physicians faced Medicare cuts due to payment
redistributions caused by policy changes implemented by the Centers for Medicare
& Medicaid Services (CMS). These cuts would have severely threatened patient
access to care and further strained physician practices working to stay open
during a global pandemic. While the AMA was able to successfully work with
Congress on legislation that delayed and phased in those cuts, history repeated
itself in 2022, 2023 and 2024 as physicians faced another round of cuts from
still more payment redistributions. Explore the timeline of physician payment
through the years to learn more.



Bottom line: throughout the years, the AMA has had countless interactions with
lawmakers about issues related to Medicare and made it clear that these issues
need to be fixed. The Medicare physician payment system is flawed and outdated.
Medicare payment reform is long overdue.


What's At Stake

Cuts, temporary measures and partial fixes to the Medicare physician payment
system are not sustainable. They hinder physicians’ ability to adequately pay
staff, purchase new equipment and invest in their practices.

Without long-term reform, physicians could be forced to close their doors for
good, leaving Medicare patients without access to high-quality care.

The Way Forward

The Medicare physician payment system needs reform to better meet the needs of
patients and physicians. The right solutions will encourage innovation, while
enabling small and large practices across rural and urban areas to thrive. The
AMA and the Federation of Medicine developed a set of principles to guide
advocacy efforts on Medicare physician payment reform. Overall, a rational
Medicare payment system would: 

 * Ensure financial stability and predictability.
 * Promote value-based care.
 * Safeguard access to high-quality care. 

Join the Fight to Fix Medicare Now

We’re dedicated to raising awareness of Medicare physician payment system
problems so that we can work towards solutions that protect physician practices
and patients’ access to care. It’s vital that patients and physicians use their
voices to advocate for change. 

Click the button below to learn about the various ways to get involved in the
fight to Fix Medicare Now.

Get Involved



FOOTER

© 2024 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.

Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Code of Conduct | Website Accessibility | Cookie
Settings

Logo Image







We have recognized your opt-out signal. To learn more about changing your opt-in
signal preferences, please visit globalprivacycontrol.org


OPT OUT OF TARGETED ADVERTISING

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect
information. The information collected may be used on our Sites to assess what
features are most important to users, and to allow you to access the Sites
without re-entering a username or password, personalize Sites for future use,
and other similar activities. Ad networks and data analytics firms track and
analyze traffic on our Sites and other websites, in part, to determine
advertising effectiveness, browser types and website usage trends, website and
systems performance and to present targeted ads based on information collected
through tracking. However, you can choose not to allow cookies related to
targeted advertising. For more information about the First and Third Party
Cookies used please review our Privacy Policy.
Privacy Policy
Allow All


MANAGE CONSENT PREFERENCES

TARGETED ADVERTISING

Targeted Advertising

Third party trackers collect information used for analytics and to personalize
your experience with targeted ads. Under the Colorado Privacy Act, you have the
right to opt out of targeted advertising. You may exercise your right to opt out
of targeted advertising by turning off this toggle. If you opt out, we will not
serve you personalized ads based on your actions on other websites, but you may
still receive personalized ads based on your interactions with us. Please review
our Privacy Policy for additional information. Additionally, you may contact our
legal department for further clarification about your rights as a Colorado
consumer.

STRICTLY NECESSARY COOKIES

These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched
off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you
which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy
preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block
or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.

Back Button


COOKIE LIST



Search Icon
Filter Icon

Clear
checkbox label label
Apply Cancel
Consent Leg.Interest
checkbox label label
checkbox label label
checkbox label label

Confirm My Choices