NPR: Doctors treating Medicare patients face huge cut

by: CHARLES FIEGL May 6, 2010

Photo courtesy of the National Institutes of Health The 21.3% cut to Medicare reimbursements set for May 31 is getting national attention. National Public Radio (NPR) listeners were briefed on the cut caused by the sustainable growth rate (SGR) mechanism in the Medicare payment formula during the morning commute on Thursday.

Physician practices might be somewhat relieved this discussion is taking place 25 days before the cut hits. The publicity for this issue is good and there's no such thing as bad press.

This won't be the last you hear about a Medicare payment fix in the national news. Expect medical associations, such as the groups interviewed in the story (the American College of Physicians and American Medical Association), to increase lobbying efforts for a permanent pay fix over the next couple weeks.

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