WASHINGTON, DC - House Energy and Commerce Committee Health Subcommittee Chairman Joe Pitts (R-PA) and Vice Chairman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) issued the following statements in response to the Congressional Budget Office updated estimate of H.R. 2810, the Medicare Patient Access and Quality Improvement Act. CBO now estimates H.R. 2810 would cost $153.2 billion over the next ten years, more than $20 billion less than previously estimated.
Authored by Rep. Burgess, H.R. 2810 was approved by the full committee by a vote of 51-0 on July 31, 2013. The bill would repeal the flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) system and replace it with a fair and stable system for physician payment in Medicare. It would promote the highest quality of care for our nation’s seniors and would seek input from expert medical organizations and other groups in the determination of quality measures. Learn more about the committee’s efforts on SGR here.
“Providing security and peace of mind to our nation’s seniors is of critical importance, which is why our committee acted in July to once and for all, repeal and replace the flawed SGR formula," said Chairman Pitts. “For too long, seniors have been left to wonder if their physicians will be able to continue their practice because of a broken, bureaucratic payment system. It is encouraging to see our bipartisan work succeeding."
“Fixing the flawed Medicare payment formula is some of the most important work facing this Congress", said Vice Chairman Burgess. “The committee’s legislation to repeal the SGR is vital to the protect the health of our seniors and ensure that our nation’s best doctors continue to see Medicare patients. I am certain that this new estimate by the CBO will accelerate the pace in passing this bill. Now is the time to repeal the broken SGR and replace it with a system that is good for both doctors and seniors."
