Skip Navigation Links

The rumors we sniffed out last week are true: President Obama wants Donald Berwick to run CMS. Berwick, 63, is currently a professor in Harvard's Department of Health Policy and Management. He's also president and CEO of the Institute for Health Care Improvement, a non-profit policy group that aims to boost health care quality while lowering costs.

The Obama administration has been in place for more than a year now, but they still hasn't named an administrator to run CMS. After signing health care reform into law, it seems reasonable to assume that having a political appointee run the agency must be a priority at the White House. This week, we outlined several changes in the health care reform bill to the Medicare.

I just got an email from a trusty CMS source: Expect a 10-day freeze on payment for all your Medicare claims delivered after April 1. Congress had several proposals to tack on another 30-day delay, but action on these measures stalled.

Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) has offered an amendment to the reconciliation package for the new health care reform law that would eliminate the sustainable growth rate (SGR) budget mechanism responsible for the 21% cut to Medicare payments. 

It's a done deal. Health care reform measures in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) are now the law of the land.

Login

User Name:
Password:
Welcome to the new Part B News Online. If you are a returning user having trouble logging in, please click here.
Blog Archive
Back to top