If we need an example of how tax increases happen, but the promised future spending cuts don’t, here it is. Implementing the SGR will be fatal to seniors, the AMA cries.
True, many doctors can’t afford to see Medicare beneficiaries. That could be fixed by doing away with the price controls. Let doctors bill the patients a mutually agreeable fee, and let Medicare calculate the reimbursement to the patient.
Let Medicare and its contractors figure out the AMA’s Resource-Based Relative Value Scale and CPT codes. After all, they know the answer (and can put you in prison if you get it wrong). Cut out all the billing overhead related to CPT, and you might be able to lower your fees without losing money.
It would be interesting to see the AMA’s response to getting rid of the price controls, and its main source of revenue. If you doubt the effectiveness of its lobbyists, ask yourself why this suggestion never comes up.
Time after time, AAPS says let the cuts take effect—and let doctors declare independence by opting out or disenrolling. That’s a win/win for patients and doctors. Patients can get an appointment, and doctors can continue to serve them. The losers are those whose revenue is tied to CPT, audits, and prosecutions.
On the Medicaid front, both doctors and states are going over the cliff just as ObamaCare counts on the massive expansion of Medicaid rolls to bring about “near-universal” coverage. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has decided that California’s Medi-Cal can go ahead with the 10% pay cut. (See AAPS News, Jan. 2013)
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
- Take the Medicaid survey: https://aaps.wufoo.com/forms/z7w6m7/
- Prepare to opt out of Medicare, if you haven’t already (note deadlines if you have a Medicare participation contract).
- Sign the Physicians’ Declaration of Independence.
- Tell your Members of Congress to let the SGR cuts happen, but do away with the ban on balance billing. Find their contact information here: http://heritageaction.com/congress
- Read letter from AAPS member Dr. Steven Horvitz: “Let the cut occur.”
