CSSA Testifies on Insurers’ Latest Problematic Policy

Dr. John Satterfield, testifying on behalf of the Connecticut State Society of Anesthesiologists (CSSA), briefed lawmakers (7:09:17) last week on a recent insurance policy that removes payment for physical status (PS) modifiers—an essential tool for recognizing the medical complexity of anesthesia patients. He explained that anesthesiologists rely on PS modifiers to distinguish between healthy patients and those with significant comorbidities who require far more intensive monitoring, planning, and perioperative management. Eliminating payment for these modifiers, he told the lawmakers, effectively treats all patients the same, regardless of risk, and ignores well established clinical realities.

Dr. Satterfield testified during a hearing of the Connecticut House Health and Real Estate Committee. During his testimony, he warned legislators that insurers’ refusal to recognize the complexity of care for higher risk patients will have direct consequences for hospitals, anesthesia groups, and patients themselves. When insurers disregard the added work necessary for managing sicker individuals, he emphasized, they undermine individualized patient care, discourage facilities from treating complex cases, and shift uncompensated costs onto hospitals and practitioners. This latest policy, he noted, follows a troubling pattern of insurers adopting strategies that limit appropriate payment and jeopardize the ability of physicians to deliver safe, tailored anesthesia care.

Dr. Satterfield urged lawmakers to intervene before patient care is further compromised. “Last year it was a proposed cap on the time necessary to provide individualized anesthesia care. This year it’s a refusal to recognize the complex care certain patients demand during an anesthetic. Please address what is just another example of an unethical policy to ensure nonpayment for individualized anesthetic care.” His message underscored the importance of maintaining payment structures that reflect medical complexity and support safe, patient centered anesthesia care.

Learn more about ASA’s advocacy for fair anesthesia payments

Read Dr. Satterfield’s testimony