Sustainable Growth Rate Legislation AKA "The Doc Fix"
As a preface, the SGR has been an ongoing problem for providers serving Medicare patients and their beneficiaries. In the past, a "doc fix" has been applied to prevent massive Medicare reimbursement rate cuts, which ultimately would end up in fewer physicians available to treat Medicare patients. Congress is attempting to pass a comprehensive bill that will "fix" the problem (one that rewards quantity of services rather than quality of care) rather than doing an annual patch, which has been the practice for the last ten years.This is a huge deal for our profession, but also the future of healthcare. Many professional PAs believe that this bill could make or break the profession, which is why it is so important that you are active in pursuing its passage. The SGR bills were both recently passed out of the House and Senate committees and will move to the floor of both chambers sometime in the first few months of 2014. AAPA has been HEAVILY engaged in the development of the bills, as well as some of the amendments which were included in the bills. PAs in the states of the relevant senators have been interviewed and have conveyed personal stories to their senators to help garner support.
Once AAPA finds out early this year what the next steps are for the SGR legislation, they will put out a call to action to AAPA members asking for their support and for them to contact members of Congress to ask them to support these PA provisions. PAFT (PAs for Tomorrow) and their many members are the best advocates they have for the profession. Additionally, other healthcare organizations with aligned interests and Congress are working with them directly on this matter.
