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On September 14, 2012, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a sequestration report. This report is the byproduct of the Sequestration Transparency Act of 2012, which required the White House to submit to Congress a report detailing the specific budgetary cuts resulting from the Budget Control Act's (BCA) sequestration process.
The Budget Control Act created the "super committee" that was tasked with reducing the deficit by $1.2 trillion over 10 years. The super committee's failure to reach an agreement prompted the sequestration process, which is the term used to represent the process of automatic across-the-board cuts embedded in the BCA scheduled to begin in January of 2013 and last for 9 years.
The provisions of the BCA capped Medicare cuts at 2 percent per year and exempted Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) from any cuts. Medicare's portion of the sequestration would amount to $11.065 billion, a figure equal to 2 percent of Medicare spending slated from January to September of 2013.
The OMB sequestration report indicated there is little flexibility in their allocation of these cuts. While the report documents 2 percent cuts to the two Medicare trust funds, it does not provide a break out by provider.
ASA recently joined 72 other medical organizations and 51 state medical associations in urging Congress to take immediate action to thwart the pending BCA sequestration and Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) payment cuts. ASA will continue to oppose these cuts.
Review the report.Review recent ASA advocacy to Congress on these cuts.
