The federal Deficit Panel's failed proposals on a physician fee-fix coupled with healthcare cuts are the basis of planned bipartisan legislation to be introduced in the Senate, according to a report by the American Medical News.
Sens. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) said the panel's report would be a good starting point for their planned bill, which would remove the sustainable growth rate formula that causes physician fee cuts.
The panel, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, released its report Dec. 1, 2010, but only 11 of its 18 members voted for it, three votes short of the minimum needed.
The report recommended replacing the SGR with a formula that would encourage care coordination and pay doctors based on quality rather than quantity of services. If the new system did not work out, the proposal called for reinstating the SGR formula in 2015.
To pay for the change, the report recommended $400 billion in cuts to other healthcare services, including $60 billion in cuts for teaching hospitals.
Another deficit reduction report, released by the Bipartisan Policy Center's Debt Reduction Task Force, also recommended replacing the SGR. The loss in revenue would be financed by raising Medicare Part B premiums, revising the Medicare benefit package and co-payments, phasing out the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance, bundling Medicare post-acute care payments and reforming medical liability laws.
Read the American Medical News report on the sustainable growth rate.
Read more coverage of the deficit panel:
- Deficit Plan Wins 11 Votes, Not Enough for Passage
- Federal Deficit Panel's Draft Report Includes Fee-Fix, Cuts for Hospitals
- Deficit Panel Chairs' Proposed Healthcare Cuts Won't be Adopted
Sens. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) said the panel's report would be a good starting point for their planned bill, which would remove the sustainable growth rate formula that causes physician fee cuts.
The panel, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, released its report Dec. 1, 2010, but only 11 of its 18 members voted for it, three votes short of the minimum needed.
The report recommended replacing the SGR with a formula that would encourage care coordination and pay doctors based on quality rather than quantity of services. If the new system did not work out, the proposal called for reinstating the SGR formula in 2015.
To pay for the change, the report recommended $400 billion in cuts to other healthcare services, including $60 billion in cuts for teaching hospitals.
Another deficit reduction report, released by the Bipartisan Policy Center's Debt Reduction Task Force, also recommended replacing the SGR. The loss in revenue would be financed by raising Medicare Part B premiums, revising the Medicare benefit package and co-payments, phasing out the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance, bundling Medicare post-acute care payments and reforming medical liability laws.
Read the American Medical News report on the sustainable growth rate.
Read more coverage of the deficit panel:
- Deficit Plan Wins 11 Votes, Not Enough for Passage
- Federal Deficit Panel's Draft Report Includes Fee-Fix, Cuts for Hospitals
- Deficit Panel Chairs' Proposed Healthcare Cuts Won't be Adopted