Many physicians have voiced concern about the impact of ongoing reimbursement declines and rising inflation on the ability to keep independent practices afloat.
Here's what two physicians told Becker's they want to see from CMS in the future:
Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
Susan J. Baumgaertel, MD. Founder and CEO of Parapluie Partners and myMDadvocate (Seattle): Medicare payments under the Physician Fee Schedule have never kept up with inflation. This only makes accessing quality physician care more challenging for patients as physicians opt out of Medicare or retire, often out of desperation. At a time when finding a physician is often an impossible task, I find it unconscionable that year after year this payment neglect is never addressed. Yet, the cost of living, cost of running a practice (employee salaries/benefits, other overhead), and medical malpractice insurance costs keep going up. This most certainly contributes to burnout and moral injury. Fairness and transparency about how physicians are reimbursed by CMS is long overdue.
Roxanne Tyroch, MD. Physician at Intellimedicine (El Paso, Texas): Physicians want several things from Congress in order to modernize the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. HR 2474 in the 118th Congress Strengthening Medicare for Patients and Providers Act would provide an update equal to the annual percentage increase in the Medicare Economic Index. Furthermore, the Physician Fee Schedule Update and Improvements Act and the Physician Fee Stabilization Act require CMS to raise the budget neutrality threshold to $53 million from $20 million and use cumulative increases in the MEI to update the threshold every five years.