Reforming Medicare Physician Payment: Fixing SGR While Improving Care
Past Event
Reforming Medicare Physician Payment: Fixing SGR While Improving Care
The Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) is poised to trigger a 21 percent across-the-board cut to physician payments if Congress does not act by March 30. Each year since 2003, Congress has bypassed the draconian cuts by implementing a short-term “doc fix” legislation; an approach that leads to unpredictability for providers, Congressional inefficiency and missed opportunities for improvements in care delivery. In 2013, a tri-committee bill was developed to permanently fix the SGR, including the adoption of value-based payment models such as bundled payments, medical homes and accountable care models. However, due to the surmounting cost of a permanent solution — over $100 billion — the prospect of a long-term solution is daunting.
On January 28, the Merkin Initiative for Payment Reform and Clinical Leadership hosted an event that convened clinicians, payers and policy experts to discuss feasible strategies for permanently solving the SGR problem. It included remarks from Patrick Conway of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Hon. Michael Burgess (R-TX) and Gene Greene (D-TX) from the U.S. House of Representatives.
Download the discussion paper from the event, “Medicare Physician Payment Reform: Securing the Connection Between Value and Payment.”
Download Alice Rivlin’s prepared testimony to the House Energy and Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Health, “A Permanent Solution to the SGR: The Time is Now.”
Agenda
Next Steps on Physician Payment Reform: The CMS Perspective
Patrick Conway
Deputy Administrator for Innovation & Quality, CMS Chief Medical Officer - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Closing Keynote: The Congressional Context
Lessons on Physician Payment Reform: Coordination of Primary and Specialty Care
Robert Berenson
Institute Fellow - Urban Institute
(formerly led Medicare payment policy at the Health Care Financing Administration)
Reid Blackwelder
Board Chair - American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
Tom Lewandowski
Cardiologist - Appleton Cardiology ThedaCare
Alice Borrelli
Global Director Health and Education - Intel Corporation
Thomas Simmer
Senior VP for Health Care Value & Provider Affiliation; Chief Medical Officer - BlueCross BlueShield Michigan
Lessons on Physician Payment Reform: Opportunities in Specialty Care
Joel Brill
Medical Director - FAIR Health, Inc.
Kelly Conroy
CEO - Triple Aim Development Group
Kevin Bozic
Chair, Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School - University of Texas at Austin
Randy Krakauer
National Medical Director, Medicare - Aetna
Pam French
VP, Compensation and Benefits - Boeing
How to Pay for a Permanent SGR Fix
Bill Kramer
Executive Director, National Health Policy - Pacific Business Group on Health
Robert Berenson
Institute Fellow - Urban Institute
(formerly led Medicare payment policy at the Health Care Financing Administration)
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