{"id":404720,"date":"2024-01-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=404720"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"Protecting-Americans-Access-to-High-Quality-Health-Care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/Protecting-Americans-Access-to-High-Quality-Health-Care\/","title":{"rendered":"Protecting Americans\u2019 Access to High-Quality Health Care"},"content":{"rendered":"

(StatePoint) Accepting Medicare is becoming increasingly unsustainable for physicians, which has resulted in many practices refusing to take new Medicare patients, or even to shutter their doors. At the same time, millions of additional Americans are projected to rely on Medicare in the coming years. With a 3.37% reduction to Medicare imposed at the start of this year, the American Medical Association (AMA) says that reforms are needed to protect millions of Americans\u2019 access to their physicians.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter three consecutive years of Medicare cuts, physicians and patients are at a crossroads. Physicians have faced reductions in Medicare payments each of the past four years on top of steeply rising practice costs and the burdens of nearly four years of COVID-19. Continuing down this road is unsustainable for many physicians, particularly those in smaller private practices,\u201d says Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, president of the AMA.<\/p>\n

An AMA analysis of Medicare Trustees data finds that Medicare physician payments increased by just 0.4% a year between 2001 and 2023. Meanwhile, the cost of running a medical practice\u2014including office rent, employee wages and insurance premiums\u2014went up by 47% during that same period. Today, physicians are the only Medicare providers who do not receive an annual inflationary update, hindering their ability to adequately pay staff, purchase new equipment and invest in their practices.<\/p>\n

Struggling physician practices nationwide have already been forced to make such tough choices as refusing to accept Medicare, absorbing their practices into larger companies, and even shutting down operations entirely. As a result, some Medicare patients\u2014like Dr. Ehrenfeld\u2019s own parents, who recently struggled to find a new physician\u2014will increasingly be left without access to high-quality care, with the largest burden on rural and underserved areas. New cuts will erode this access even further.<\/p>\n

\u201cCongress has the power to prevent these cuts and save patients\u2019 access to their physicians,\u201d says Dr. Ehrenfeld. \u201cThe Preserving Seniors\u2019 Access to Physicians Act of 2023 is a bipartisan legislative fix that will completely eliminate the cuts. I urge everyone to visit FixMedicareNow.org and contact their member of Congress. Tell them to pass H.R.6683, and protect Medicare patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

To learn more, visit FixMedicareNow.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Through reform, advocates say that the Medicare system will better meet the needs of patients and physicians, and safeguard access to high-quality care.<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Photo Credit: (c) puckons \/ iStock via Getty Images Plus<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


Protecting Americans\u2019 Access to High-Quality Health Care<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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