Hooray! The Medicare Doc Fix is Fixed Until Next April!
Congress has given up on repealing the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) as a way to pay physicians under Medicare. This blog has previously written about the futility of politicians’ efforts to “fix” the way they pay physicians (especially here, here and here).
The one they just passed last week runs for a year. And, just as always, these politicians who are elected for two-year to six-year terms voted to massively increase spending today, in exchange for draconian cuts a decade hence.
According to the Congressional Budget Office’s score of the bill, it increases Medicare’s physician payments by $15.8 billion over ten years. However, $11.2 billion (71 percent) is spent by 2015, and $13.3 billion (84 percent) is spent by 2016.
The savings to pay for this? Those come later, much later: Savings don’t become greater than spending until 2020, and not significant until 2024 — the last year of the mandated scoring “window“, when the law is supposed to claw back $9.3 billion from hospitals and re-impose the sequester on Medicare.
Good luck with that. Congress continues to make a mockery of Medicare-physician payment reform.
This has been going on for at least a dozen years now. It’s basically a way to entice physicians that they should contribute to their representative.
Physicians are on the brink of revolting (they are already revolted). Congress has made a mockery of healthcare reform not just Physician payment reform.
“And, just as always, these politicians who are elected for two-year to six-year terms voted to massively increase spending today, in exchange for draconian cuts a decade hence.”
Why worry now when you can let other people worry later?
You can always rely on the CBO to let you know just how bad it is going to be.
“Savings don’t become greater than spending until 2020, and not significant until 2024 — the last year of the mandated scoring “window“
That’s around the time they are all retired, out of congress and relaxing on their yachts.
ahhh, the good life
“Congress continues to make a mockery of Medicare-physician payment reform.”
Its not going to stop anytime soon either.
Not for a while at least
“Hooray! The Medicare Doc Fix is Fixed Until Next April!”
I’ll expect a similar blog post a year from now!
I never predict, but I think that is a safe bet!
If there’s still a system in place!
I wonder if we can expect an uprising of physicians in the foreseeable future.
Give Congress the ol’ white coat treatment
Colonoscopic Tonsillectomy.
In one end out the other
“And, just as always, these politicians who are elected for two-year to six-year terms voted to massively increase spending today, in exchange for draconian cuts a decade hence.”
It’s ridiculous. It happens all over, not just with these Medicare payments. No one wants to make the tough decisions.
That’s what I have a girlfriend for
As I recall, back in 2010, the Medicare doc fix was stripped out of the Obamacare bill so it would be easier to claim that Obamacare would not be a gigantic cost overrun from day one.
And sure enough, the doc fix is back, it costs a bundle, and it fixes nothing.