The American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons praised lawmakers for introducing HR 2474, a bill aiming to improve Medicare's physician pay system.
The bill would implement an annual physician payment update beginning in 2024 that would be based on Medicare's economic index, according to an April 6 news release. The pay updates would reflect physician practice cost inflation.
Currently, Medicare's payments to physicians declined 26 percent from 2001 to 2023 when adjusted for inflation.
"Medicare physician payments have failed to keep pace with inflation, jeopardizing the viability of physician practices and patients' timely access to care," Russell Lonser, MD, chair of the AANS/CNS Washington Committee, said in the release. "While we are grateful that Congress has stepped in to mitigate steep Medicare cuts over the past few years, comprehensive reform of the physician payment system must be a priority for Congress this year."
Reps. Raul Ruiz, MD, (D-Calif.); Larry Bucshon, MD, (R-Ind.); Ami Bera, MD, (D-Calif.); and Mariannette Miller-Meeks, MD, (R-Iowa) introduced the bill.