Just in time for Valentine's Day,
President Obama's proposed 2012 budget was unveiled Feb. 14 and includes a two-year physician payment fix that freezes the 25% cut called for by the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR). The two years are theoretically fully paid for by savings that HHS/CMS expects to reap from Medicare and Medicaid.
These expected savings come from two sources:
payments recovered by federal fraud and abuse efforts, and better prices on drugs purchased by the Medicare and Medicaid programs. While the budget calls for an SGR fix that lasts 10 years, only the first two years are paid for. The budget doesn't address a permanent change to the formula.
When asked at the press conference that followed the unveiling of the budget, CMS Administrator Donald Berwick, MD,
struck a familiar refrain. "We need to have a longer-term conversation with Congress about what happens beyond 2014 [when the paid-for two years run out]," he said. President Obama is committed to a permanent fix, Dr. Berwick added, and he himself pledged to work with Congress on it.
Look for more details on the proposed budget, and the proposed pay fix, in an upcoming issue of
Part B News. For now, check out this complete 47-minute recording of the press conference held yesterday at HHS headquarters in Washington. Top agency chiefs from HHS, CMS, FDA and CDC were present.