Prior authorization has continued to be a thorn in the sides of physicians nationwide.
Anders Gilberg, senior vice president of government affairs for the Medical Group Management Association, wrote a statement July 31 addressing the burdens of prior authorization and expressing support for the Gold Card Act of 2023:
"Year after year, medical practices identify prior authorization requirements as the most challenging and burdensome obstacle to delivering high-quality patient care. A critical step towards much-needed reform, MGMA supports the Gold Card Act of 2023, which would exempt providers from prior authorization requirements for certain services if 90 percent of their requests were previously approved, thereby allowing physician practices to focus resources on patient care. Medical groups report that only 7 percent of the Medicare Advantage plans they contract with offer gold-carding programs. By passing this commonsense legislation, Congress can ensure continuity of care and ultimately put physicians back in the driver’s seat of their patients' treatment plans."