Jan 25 2012
Some specific provisions the Republican leadership plans to hold repeal votes on include the Medicare advisory panel and the CLASS Act. Meanwhile, the AMA is pointing to "war savings" as a possible way to pay for the fix to the Medicare physician payment formula.
Politico Pro: GOP Health Agenda Includes Targeted Repeal
House Republicans plan to hold repeal votes on bits and pieces of President Barack Obama's health care reform law this year, targeting a Medicare advisory panel, a long-term care insurance program, medical device taxes and the percentage insurance companies must spend on direct care. But they'll likely sidestep high-profile votes on full repeal and on the individual mandate, instead allowing the Supreme Court to first rule on the law, according to Republican lawmakers who attended a policy-setting briefing in Baltimore over the weekend (DoBias, 1/23).
CQ HealthBeat: AMA's Carmel: Use War Savings To Cancel SGR
Congress should eliminate the Sustainable Growth Rate formula for Medicare physician payment and use war savings to cover the estimated $300 billion, 10-year cost, the American Medical Association and other groups said in a letter to congressional conferees Monday. AMA President Peter W. Carmel said "Congress can use projected funds that won't be spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to protect access to care for military and seniors without adding to the nation's deficit. Congress should not squander this opportunity to protect patients, physicians and taxpayers." Doctor payment rates for military families covered by the TRICARE are the same as Medicare reimbursement levels (1/23).
 This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
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Study examines potential impact of the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan on cancer patients