Here are seven things for spine surgeons to know for Thursday, May 2, 2013.

More than 100 orthopedic surgeons plan to visit Washington DC on Thursday, May 2, to lobby members of Congress as part of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons National Orthopaedic Leadership Conference.

The North American Spine Society has sent a letter to Fred Upton, chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, outlining the reforms NASS believes the Sustainable Growth Rate replacement draft proposal would benefit from.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons co-hosted an event to brief freshmen Congressional members to inform them of the important issues for medical specialists, according to an AAOS Now report.

The Senate's 114-page budget plan, chaired by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), includes restored Medicare funding for the 2 percent reimbursement cuts enacted by the sequester, as well as a permanent — though non-specific — fix to replace the sustainable growth rate that would drastically cut physician pay.

House Republicans vowed not to force hospitals to pay for the party's plan to repeal Medicare's sustainable growth rate, an annual source of legislative ire that would drastically cut physician pay that Congress has overridden every year since 2003, according to a report by The Hill.

John Finkenberg, MD, is on the North American Spine Society's board of directors as the chair of the advocacy committee. He has practiced orthopedic surgery for 20 years while also staying active in laboratory and clinical research. Dr. Finkenberg advocates for NASS and the spinal field through frequent trips to Washington, D.C., to meet with Congressmen and discuss healthcare policy.

John R. Tongue, MD, president of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons, said the organization is pleased with the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 but urges elected officials to find a permanent solution to the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is preparing for the 27 percent cut to Medicare physician payments that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2013, if Congress does not act to preserve the sustainable growth rate, according the American Society of Anesthesiologists.

The Alliance of Specialty Medicine has written a letter to both Houses of Congress asking for a solution to the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate as part of the "fiscal cliff" negotiations.