[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 25, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1346-E1347]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      MEDICARE IMPROVEMENTS FOR PATIENTS AND PROVIDERS ACT OF 2008

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                               speech of

                            HON. GENE GREEN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 24, 2008

  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of HR 
6331. This important piece of legislation will delay the physician 
payment cut, which is scheduled to go into effect on July 1.
  It has been over a decade since the physician fee schedule was put in 
place to help control increases in Medicare payments to physicians.
  The Medicare program reimburses physicians who treat seniors using a 
complex formula that is based on a number of factors.
  Unfortunately, payments for physician services matched the SGR and 
expenditure targets for only the first 5 years.
  Since then, the actual expenditures have exceeded the target by so 
much that the system is no longer realistic.
  As we have learned in recent years the formula reduces payments to 
physicians when the economy goes down--a time when doctors are least 
able to absorb the extra costs.
  These payment reductions have caused many physicians to hold off on 
accepting new Medicare patients, withdraw from the program, or retire 
altogether.
  In areas like mine that rely heavily on Medicare and Medicaid, we 
probably will not be in a situation where doctors stop taking Medicare.
  Rather, we will see access problems created by attrition--where the 
gap created physician retirements is not filled by new crops of doctors 
willing to take Medicare patients.

[[Page E1347]]

  If we reach that point, Medicare will have failed in its mission to 
provide equality in access to health care for our senior citizens.
  Twice we have tried to pass legislation to address the physician 
payment cut and these bills were vetoed twice by the President.
  H.R. 6331 will delay by 18 months the 10.6% physician pay-cut in 
Medicare reimbursement rates due to take effect July 1 and will give 
physicians a 1.1 % payment update for 2009.
  This bill is not a long term solution to the physician payment and 
SGR problem, but it does give Congress time to revamp the program.

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