Giving an independent board such as the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) the power to set prices would yield $2 billion in savings over 10 years, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports.
Two-billion dollars is a lot of money, but it's not when considering CMS spends $2 billion in a matter of days.
President Barack Obama and several other lawmakers support the idea of letting MedPAC, or a similar group, set Medicare prices. Obama proposes the creation of a new Independent Medicare Advisory Commission - or, IMAC. Currently, MedPAC recommends non-binding Medicare policy changes to Congress.
The CBO notes an IMAC would generate savings if it's added to the current House of Representatives health reform bill. However, those saving would be realized five or six years from now.
The entire health system needs reform in order to produce significant savings, the CBO says. Here are additional recommendations the CBO suggests should be added to the IMAC-concept. You can expect lawmakers to consider these items - which could impact your payments.
- Setting explicit and feasible quantitative goals for reducing outlays in the Medicare program.
- Providing clear authority for the council to recommend broad changes in coverage, benefit design, and payment and delivery systems.
- Incorporating an explicit fall-back mechanism (such as an across-the board reduction in payments) if goals for cost reduction are not met.
- Requiring independent verification of the expected reduction in program spending from implementing the recommendations.
- Expanding the direction and authority of the council to include making recommendations for changes to Medicaid and other government health care programs, with specific goals set for each program.
- Expanding the council's mandate to include making recommendations for changes to the broader health care system. (Some such changes might be implemented through federal regulation, while others might require future legislation.)
- Ensuring that the composition of the council is heavily weighted toward medical and other health policy experts who will actively seek to improve the efficiency of the health care system.
- Ensuring the council's access to the resources necessary to develop and test ideas for cost reduction. These resources would include access to appropriate program data, the ability to tap technical expertise available through [HHS], and explicit authority to coordinate such work with the Secretary of HHS.
- Providing mandatory funding to enhance the independence of the council.