Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

AMA: Patients and physicians call on Congress to stop Medicare cut

Cecil B. Wilson, MD
Policy
November 11, 2010
Share
Tweet
Share

A guest column by the American Medical Association, exclusive to KevinMD.com.

Medicare physician payment cuts are once again looming in the immediate future, with a cut of 25 percent now threatening to hurt access to care for seniors and military families. As many doctors know all too well, the looming cut is forcing physicians to make difficult decisions about the continuing role Medicare can play in their practices.

The AMA is working on behalf of physicians and their patients to urge Congress to take action before Thanksgiving to stop the cut through the end of 2011.  We are calling for a 13-month delay to help stabilize the situation and allow time for the new Congress to enact a permanent fix to the perennial problem of the Medicare physician payment system.  Congress must act this month – the first cut, a whopping 23 percent reduction, is scheduled to occur on December 1.

Due to the critical need for congressional action before Thanksgiving, AMA is helping physicians make their concerns heard in the nation’s capitol.  Contact your elected officials in Washington, D.C. and let them know that you support an immediate 13-month stop to the Medicare physician payment cuts, and permanent reform going forward.  Physician support is especially necessary on November 17th, “White Coat Wednesday”, when physicians across the country will join together in calling their members of Congress to urge them to stop the cut.   The Physicians Grassroots Network hotline is available at (800) 833-6354, and provides individual physicians the resources they need to contact their elected officials about how this cut would impact their medical practice.  A new flyer is available free to physicians to display in their office to educate their patients about the scheduled cut and encourage them to call their elected officials.  We also have resources on our web site to help physicians decide their Medicare participation status for next year.

There is a resounding call from across the country for Congress to take swift action.  A brand new AMA poll of Americans, released this week, found an overwhelming 94 percent of adults age 18 and over feel the looming Medicare physician payment cut poses a serious problem for seniors who rely on Medicare.  Four out of five adults said Congress should act immediately to stop the Medicare physician payment cut.

Cracks in the system are already showing, and it is critical that Congress stop the cut this month before more seniors are hurt by Congress’ continued Medicare mismanagement. About 1 in 5 physicians overall, and nearly one third of primary care physicians, are restricting the number of Medicare patients in their practice because of low reimbursement rates and the threat of future cuts, according to an AMA survey earlier this year.

Patients are concerned about this 25 percent cut, and they can make their voice heard in Congress through our Patients Action Network.  AMA’s new national ad encourages patients to contact their members of Congress by calling 888-434-6200.  Leading organizations, including AARP and the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), are calling for Congress to stop the cut.  Today is Veteran’s Day, and with MOAA, we are drawing attention to the fact that the nearly 10 million military families who rely on TRICARE also face a crisis in access to care, as TRICARE ties its physician payment rates to Medicare.  In fact, MOAA has called these payment cuts the number one threat to military beneficiaries’ health care access.

The united call for action on the scheduled 25 percent Medicare physician payment is coming from patients, physicians and military families across our nation.   It is supported by the vast majority of American adults.  This month is the time for Congress to answer that resounding call by taking action to stop the cuts – before it is too late.

Cecil B. Wilson is President of the American Medical Association.

Submit a guest post and be heard.

Prev

Using servant leadership to teach medical students

November 11, 2010 Kevin 5
…
Next

Using the internet for health information before surgery

November 11, 2010 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Public Health & Policy

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Using servant leadership to teach medical students
Next Post >
Using the internet for health information before surgery

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Cecil B. Wilson, MD

  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    AMA working to improve e-prescribing incentives and help physicians adopt health IT

    Cecil B. Wilson, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    AMA: Revisions, clarity needed before physicians form Medicare ACOs

    Cecil B. Wilson, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    AMA: Individual responsibility for health insurance helps America’s patients, pocketbooks

    Cecil B. Wilson, MD

More in Policy

  • The lab behind the lens: Equity begins with diagnosis

    Michael Misialek, MD
  • Conflicts of interest are eroding trust in U.S. health agencies

    Martha Rosenberg
  • When America sneezes, the world catches a cold: Trump’s freeze on HIV/AIDS funding

    Koketso Masenya
  • A surgeon’s late-night crisis reveals the cost confusion in health care

    Christine Ward, MD
  • The school cafeteria could save American medicine

    Scarlett Saitta
  • Native communities deserve better: the truth about Pine Ridge health care

    Kaitlin E. Kelly
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • “Think twice, heal once”: Why medical decision-making needs a second opinion from your slower brain (and AI)

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Tech
    • My journey from misdiagnosis to living fully with APBD

      Jeff Cooper | Conditions
    • Do Jewish students face rising bias in holistic admissions?

      Anonymous | Education
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • What’s driving medical students away from primary care?

      ​​Vineeth Amba, MPH, Archita Goyal, and Wayne Altman, MD | Education
    • Internal Medicine 2025: inspiration at the annual meeting

      American College of Physicians | Physician
    • A faster path to becoming a doctor is possible—here’s how

      Ankit Jain | Education
    • Residency as rehearsal: the new pediatric hospitalist fellowship requirement scam

      Anonymous | Physician
    • Are quotas a solution to physician shortages?

      Jacob Murphy | Education
    • The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain

      Richard A. Lawhern, PhD | Meds
  • Recent Posts

    • Why true listening is crucial for future health care professionals [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Love on life support: a powerful reminder from the ICU

      Syed Ahmad Moosa, MD | Physician
    • Surviving kidney disease and reforming patient care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • My journey from misdiagnosis to living fully with APBD

      Jeff Cooper | Conditions
    • Antimicrobial resistance: a public health crisis that needs your voice [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 12 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • “Think twice, heal once”: Why medical decision-making needs a second opinion from your slower brain (and AI)

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Tech
    • My journey from misdiagnosis to living fully with APBD

      Jeff Cooper | Conditions
    • Do Jewish students face rising bias in holistic admissions?

      Anonymous | Education
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • What’s driving medical students away from primary care?

      ​​Vineeth Amba, MPH, Archita Goyal, and Wayne Altman, MD | Education
    • Internal Medicine 2025: inspiration at the annual meeting

      American College of Physicians | Physician
    • A faster path to becoming a doctor is possible—here’s how

      Ankit Jain | Education
    • Residency as rehearsal: the new pediatric hospitalist fellowship requirement scam

      Anonymous | Physician
    • Are quotas a solution to physician shortages?

      Jacob Murphy | Education
    • The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain

      Richard A. Lawhern, PhD | Meds
  • Recent Posts

    • Why true listening is crucial for future health care professionals [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Love on life support: a powerful reminder from the ICU

      Syed Ahmad Moosa, MD | Physician
    • Surviving kidney disease and reforming patient care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • My journey from misdiagnosis to living fully with APBD

      Jeff Cooper | Conditions
    • Antimicrobial resistance: a public health crisis that needs your voice [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

AMA: Patients and physicians call on Congress to stop Medicare cut
12 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...