Nearly 200 members of Congress have co-signed a bipartisan letter urging House and Senate leaders to pass legislation addressing 2024's Medicare physician pay cuts, according to a Jan. 4 report from the American Medical Association.
Effective Jan. 1, physicians saw a 3.37% Medicare pay cut. The cut comes as health systems continue to battle workforce shortages, inflationary challenges and more.
Politicians have also sponsored legislation that would provide physicians with a permanent annual inflationary payment update in Medicare tied to the Medicare Economic Index.
Politicians co-signing the letter include physicians Mariannette Miller-Meeks, MD, Larry Bucshon, MD, Ami Bera, MD, Raul Ruiz, MD, Rich McCormick, MD, and Kim Schrier, MD.
"The effects of these cuts will be exacerbated in rural and underserved areas, which continue to face significant healthcare access challenges. Medicare physicians and other providers do not receive inflationary updates in the Medicare program, which is partially why eliminating these potential cuts is so crucial. We as policymakers must ensure that physicians and other providers who treat Medicare patients continue to have the necessary financial support to care for our nation's seniors," the Congress members wrote.