08.05.05

Cantwell Announces Bill to Spare Physicians from Cut in Medicare Reimbursements

Without fix, Medicare reimbursement rates will be cut 26 percent over next 6 years, costing Washington state physicians $1.9 billion

SPOKANE, WA – U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) was joined Friday by local physicians, the American Association of Retired Person’s (AARP), and the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce to announce Cantwell’s bill that will put a stop to a drastic cut in Medicare reimbursement rates for physicians.

In January 2006, physicians will face a 4.3 percent cut in reimbursement rates. The 2005 Medicare Trustees Reports forecasts a 26 percent cut in Medicare physician payment rates by 2011. During that same time period, the costs of providing healthcare are expected to increase 15 percent, placing an enormous economic strain on doctors treating Medicare patients.

Cantwell introduced her Affordable Access to Medicare Providers Act (S. 1574) in the Senate last week to block the cuts, and actually increase – by 2.7 percent – reimbursement rates doctors receive for caring for Medicare patients.

"Our seniors are already having difficulty finding a physician that accepts Medicare," Cantwell said. "And doctors are already overburdened and underpaid. We must make sure that doctors can stay in the business of healthcare, not economics. It is critical that physicians can practice medicine and that our seniors can afford to see the doctors they know and trust."

The reimbursement rate cuts are caused by a formula known as the Sustainable Growth Rate (SRG). The formula was intended to control spending on physician services in order to keep the Medicare program sustainable in the long-term. However, the volume of physician services has increased more than anticipated, triggering a drastic cut to physician reimbursement rates.

Unless Congress blocks the cuts, Washington state doctors would lose $1.9 billion between 2006 and 2014, including $39 million in 2006 alone. The cuts will average $13,000 per year for each physician in the state.

A national survey of physicians by the American Medical Association finds that 38 percent of physicians plan to decrease the number of new Medicare patients they accept if the cuts go into place, as planned, in January 2006.

Even before these cuts would take effect, seniors in Washington state are having a hard time finding physicians who accept Medicare. Nationwide, according to a survey conducted by the Medicare Payment Advisory Council, 22 percent of patients already have some problems finding a primary care physician, and 27 percent report delays getting an appointment.

Unlike other proposals to prevent the payment cuts to doctors, Cantwell’s bill would not push the expense to seniors by increasing their Medicare premiums. While a long-term solution to the SRG is necessary, Cantwell doesn’t believe seniors on a fixed income should bear the full burden of a short-term solution.

"Securing access to affordable healthcare, especially for our nation’s seniors, is critical," Cantwell said. "Hitting our seniors with large premium increases is not a solution."

Along with Dr. Jeffrey Clode, MD, Dr. Jeffrey Collins, MD, and Dr. Mark Mays, MD, Cantwell was joined Friday in Spokane by John Lothspeich of the American Association of Retired Person’s (AARP) state board, Andrew Nelson of Aging and Long Term Care of Eastern Washington, and Amy Johnson, the director of the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Inland Northwest Business Coalition on Health.