Medicare SGR Payment Policy Permanently Repealed

On Tuesday, April 14, the United States Senate passed by a 92-8 vote the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (H.R. 2), which permanently repeals the flawed Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula and reforms the Medicare physician payment system. The legislation provides for an annual 0.5 percent physician payment update starting in July 2015 through 2019, and creates incentives for physicians to transition to value-based alternative payment models (APMs). “Previous short-term SGR fixes have too often been paid for out of technical component reductions in diagnostic imaging. It is long past time to put some stability into the physician payment system. However, infinite policy details must be worked out to ensure it is implemented appropriately,” said Bibb Allen, MD, FACR, chair of the American College of Radiology Board of Chancellors. “The legislation moves us away from fee-for-service to value-based alternative payment models, most not yet designed, but this is the future and the future is now.” The SGR formula has plagued physicians by threatening drastic reimbursement reductions each year since 2001. Congress has responded by consistently applying short term patches to avert the reimbursement reductions – largely paid for through reductions to other physician services, such as the technical component for diagnostic imaging. H.R. 2, which also reauthorizes the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for a period of two years...
Source: American College of Radiology - Category: Radiology Source Type: news