SGR Status Update: March 13, 2014 March 13, 2014 Advocacy, AMA, Medicare, News HR 4209, SGR, S 2122 0 Discussions about repealing the Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula continued yesterday on Capitol Hill. In the Senate a new bill, S. 2122, was introduced by Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and John Cornyn (R-TX). Titled the “Responsible Medicare SGR Repeal and Beneficiary Access Improvement Act,” the bill would offset the cost of the original bicameral, bipartisan payment reform proposal (S. 2000) by permanently repealing the Affordable Care Act’s requirement for individuals to obtain health insurance coverage. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is not expected to schedule this bill for floor action. (The bill that is on the Senate calendar for floor action, S. 2110, contains no budgetary offsets for the bipartisan SGR repeal policy included in S. 2000.) In the House, legislation was introduced by Rep. John Tierney (D-MA), H.R. 4209, that would offset the costs of the House version of the original bipartisan, bicameral SGR repeal proposal (H.R. 4015) by capping Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funding. House Republicans blocked a motion to consider that bill on the floor. On Friday, the House is scheduled to consider an amended version H.R. 4015 that offsets the cost of the SGR repeal policy with a five-year delay in the tax penalties for individuals who do not obtain health insurance coverage. Yesterday, the White House issued the attached Statement of Administration Policy expressing strong opposition to House passage of H.R. 4015 as amended, declaring that the President would veto it. This morning, the AMA sent the attached letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) expressing profound disappointment in the partisan approaches that are being taken to resolve budgetary issues associated with repealing the SGR. The AMA reiterated its opposition to short-term remedies, and renewed its call for all parties to engage in good faith, bipartisan efforts to address these issues and enact the bill. Comments are closed.
