ACP urges members to reach out to elected officials and voice their support for the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act
Feb. 21, 2025 (ACP) -- The American College of Physicians is urging Congress to pass a bipartisan bill that aims to reverse this year's Medicare physician payment cut.
“This legislation would begin to curtail the cuts physician practices have faced over the last four years while they have experienced high inflation,” ACP writes in a Feb. 4 letter to congressional leaders. “We urge you to quickly enact this legislation.”
As ACP has emphasized to policymakers, Medicare payments to physicians have dipped by 33 percent since 2001 when adjusted for inflation. At the same time, medical practice costs continue to rise.
Each year since 2020, Congress has acted to mitigate annual reductions in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule conversion factor (CF). “However, even with the additional partial relief from Congress each year, 2025 now marks the fifth consecutive CF cut,” said George Lyons, Esq., ACP director of legislative affairs.
The 2.83 percent Medicare reimbursement cut went into effect on Jan. 1. When combined with federal estimates of a 3.6 percent increase in practice cost expenses for this year, physicians are facing a total 6.43 percent cut unless Congress acts.
“This unstable path threatens Medicare beneficiaries' timely access to quality care in both rural and urban settings,” Lyons said. “The ongoing downward reimbursement spiral is also contributing to consolidation in the health care system as more and more clinicians are no longer able to sustain their practices and are forced to seek practice options, such as hospital employment, private equity and other alternatives.”
Late last year, Congress came close to averting most of the 2025 payment cut. "However, unfortunately, this deal fell apart and instead a clean continuing resolution was passed, funding the government at fiscal year 2024 levels through March 2025," Lyons said.
Now, relief may be on the horizon thanks to the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act, recently introduced by Reps. Dr. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.), Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.), Dr. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) and Dr. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) along with several other House members from both parties.
“The legislation prospectively stops the entirety of the current reimbursement reduction and helps account for rising inflationary costs with a 2 percent payment increase,” Lyons said.
What are the chances of passage? “It's likely we will get 2.5 percent returned per the original end-of-year proposal. To get the full 2.83 percent would be gravy, and perhaps Congress could make the cut retroactive to Jan. 1,” Lyons said. “It will be a heavier lift to get [inflationary] updates given the cost of the package.”
As Congress considers whether to act with a possible government shutdown looming in March, ACP is urging members to make their voices heard. “Members should take action on our AIMn alert, call their elected officials and visit congressional field offices to voice their support,” Lyons said. “And they should urge other doctors in their chapters to act.”
Back to the February 21, 2025 issue of ACP Advocate