SFMS Applauds Leader Pelosi for HR 1470 - Bipartisan SGR Repeal Package March 20, 2015 Advocacy, AMA, CMA, Medicare, Payment, Politics and Medicine SGR, HR 1470, Nancy Pelosi, sustainable growth rate 0 Lawmakers yesterday unveiled a bipartisan bill to eliminate the Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula. The bill, HR 1470 (no number has been assigned yet to the Senate version), is an updated version of the policies set forth in last year’s bipartisan, bicameral Medicare payment reform bill. House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi have now largely agreed to a $213 billion deal to fund the permanent SGR replacement, along with a two-year extension of Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding. The newly introduced legislation would block a 21% cut in physicians’ Medicare fees that otherwise takes effect April 1. It would also offset about $70 billion of the projected costs. The House is expected to vote on the entire proposal on March 24. SFMS and the California Medical Association fully support the SGR bill, the funding framework, and CHIP extension. SFMS leaders have contacted Leader Pelosi’s office to thank her for her work on this bill and for her tireless efforts to improve access to care in San Francisco and California. Key provisions of HR 1470 HR 1470 calls for: Immediate repeal of SGR. Positive annual payment updates of 0.5% would be provided for four-and-a-half years, beginning July 1. Current Medicare quality reporting programs would be replaced with a simplified and consolidated merit-based incentive payment system (MIPS). 5% incentive payment for physicians is provided for physicians who participate in alternative payment models and meet certain thresholds. Provisions similar to the Standards of Care Protection Act are included. Click here to view the proposed bill. Physicians’ Call to Action SFMS and physician organizations across the country are urging physicians nationwide to participate in a National Call to Action day. Contact your senators and representatives on Tuesday, March 24, and urge them to support HR 1470 in any of the following ways: Use AMA's toll-free Physicians Grassroots Hotline at (800) 833-6354. Send an urgent email to your lawmakers reinforcing the need for SGR repeal now. Contact legislators directly through their own social media channels, and share your message with your own Facebook friends and Twitter followers. #FixMedicareNow Comments are closed.
