Congress Fails to Stop All Medicare Payment Cuts

This evening, Congress is expected to take action to fund the government for the remainder of its fiscal year 2023. The bill includes several Medicare-related provisions, but it fails to provide physicians with complete relief from impending Medicare payment cuts.

The bill postpones the 4% Medicare Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act (PAYGO) cuts for 2 years but permits a partial Medicare Physician Fee Schedule cut for both 2023 and  2024 to be implemented.  Additionally, the package does not mitigate the 2% sequestration cut that went into effect earlier this year. This is the third consecutive year that Congress has acted to address the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rule through year-end legislation, without implementing a sustainable fix. 

ASA is extremely disappointed by Congress’ failure to stop all Medicare payment cuts, especially during a time when providers face record inflation, high practice costs, and lingering impacts of COVID-19. The failure to appropriately address cuts will undermine Medicare’s ability to deliver on its promise to seniors and future generations. ASA joined the Surgical Care Coalition in a formal communication to Congressional leadership expressing disappointment with Congressional inaction. ASA will continue to advocate to legislative stakeholders and regulatory agencies regarding the unsustainability of the current Medicare payment system and stressing the need for systemic Medicare payment reform. 

Addendum: Consolidated Appropriation Act, 2023: Health Provisions (PDF)