WASHINGTON WIRE
June 6, 2008
Issue 172
Senate Finance Chair to Move Forward with Physician Payment Legislation
Congress Approves Fiscal Year 20009 Budget Resolution
Members of Congress Request Delay in DME Competitive Bidding Programs
Top Story
Senate Finance Chair to Move Forward with Physician Payment Legislation
This week, Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, outlined his plan to prevent a 10.6% Medicare physician payment cut scheduled to take effect on June 30, 2008.
The Chairman's package would delay the pending cut for 18 months, providing doctors with a 1.1% increase in their Medicare reimbursement rates. The final legislation will likely contain a number of other Democratic priorities such as electronic prescribing, ESRD, imaging, and quality provisions, an expansion of the Medical Homes Demonstration Project, and an extension of the Medicare therapy caps exceptions process.
The bill will cost approximately $20 billion over five years but would be offset primarily by cuts to the Medicare managed care program (Medicare Advantage). Medicare Advantage programs are estimated to cost, on average, 117% more than traditional fee-for-service plans. However, cuts to the Medicare Advantage program are strongly opposed by many Republicans and have drawn veto threats from the Bush Administration.
While Chairman Baucus' package is largely supported by Democrats, the Senator is struggling to garner enough Republican votes to prevent a filibuster next week when he brings the bill straight to the Senate floor. Finance Committee Members Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) have announced that they will be supporting the bill. But Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA) announced that he will be offering an alternative bill to provide physicians with a 0.5% increase through this year and a 1.1% increase next year, that would not draw a veto from the President.
Health Care News
Congress Approves Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Resolution
This week, the House and Senate approved the final fiscal year (FY) 2009 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 70), marking the beginning of the annual appropriations process.
The joint budget resolution is a non-binding agreement, providing guidelines for Congress' appropriation work.
The House approved the resolution 214-210, while the Senate approved it by a 48-45 vote.
The budget resolution provides $436.2 billion for overall domestic discretionary spending for FY 2009, including $30 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and $48.2 billion for veterans' programs, including medical care.
In addition, the resolution calls for reserve funds for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and changes to Medicare including increasing reimbursement rates for physician services and adjustments to the Medicare Savings program.
House Budget Committee Chairman John M. Spratt Jr. (D-SC) stated that the plan will cause the budget to be in the black by FY 2012 with a projected $22 billion surplus.
Members of Congress Request Delay in DME Competitive Bidding Program
On Monday, 132 House Representatives sent a letter to Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY) and Ranking Member Jim McCrery (R-LA) asking for a one-year delay in the implementation of the Medicare Competitive Bidding Program for durable medical equipment (DME).
The signatories expressed concern with the alleged discrepancies between information submitted by bidders and received by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). In addition, the lawmakers requested more transparency as to how bidders were chosen and how beneficiary copayments were calculated.
Any competitive bidding changes could move as a stand-alone bill or as part of the Medicare physician reimbursement package.
In related news, the American Association of Homecare has planned to file a last-minute request with the DC federal district court for an injunction to prevent the initial implementation of the Program on July 1, 2008.
Upcoming Events
Hearings
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Disparities in Health and Healthcare
House Ways and Means - Subcommittee on Health
10 a.m., 1100 Longworth
Nursing Home Arbitration Act
House Judiciary - Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law
2 p.m., 2141 Rayburn
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Wounded Warriors
House Veterans' Affairs Committee
Time TBA, 334 Cannon
Supreme Court Decisions on Health, Safety and Employment
Senate Judiciary Committee
10 a.m., 226 Dirksen
For More Information
For further information on any topics discussed or publications listed, or to get copies of anything mentioned in this alert, please call 202.466.6550 and ask for the Legislative Practice Group.
Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville, PC is a full service law firm specializing in health care and education law and located at:
1501 M Street, NW, Seventh Floor, Washington, DC 20005
© Copyright 2007, Powers Pyles Sutter & Verville, PC
All rights reserved.
