SHM Joins Multi-Stakeholder Urging Congress to Halt Impending Medicare Cuts

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The Honorable Charles Schumer
Majority Leader
United States Senate
S-221, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Minority Leader
United States Senate
S-230, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Mike Johnson
Speaker
United States House of Representatives
H-232, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Hakeem Jeffries
Minority Leader
United States House of Representatives
H-204, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Johnson, and Minority Leader Jeffries:

The undersigned national medical organizations and state medical societies write to strongly urge Congress to quickly pass legislation to stop another impending round of Medicare payment cuts. Absent Congressional intervention, physicians are facing a 3.37 percent payment reduction on January 1, 2024.

The combination of ever-increasing practice costs and long stagnated Medicare payment rates has become unsustainable. When adjusted for inflation in practice costs, Medicare physician pay has declined 26 percent from 2001 to 2023. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently acknowledged that the cost of running a practice will increase 4.6 percent in 2024, yet physicians are being subjected to a 3.37 percent cut next year.

If Congress does not act by the end of the year to stop this impending payment cut, many physicians will be forced to reduce available health care services, cut office hours, or even forgo treating Medicare patients altogether. America’s physicians and their patients deserve better.

The flawed Medicare physician payment system is in desperate need of fixing. We stand ready to work with House and Senate leadership on bipartisan solutions to stop these drastic payment reductions and provide stability in the Medicare program for our nation’s seniors and the physicians who care for them.

Sincerely,

American Medical Association

State Medical Associations
Medical Association of the State of Alabama
Alaska State Medical Association
Arizona Medical Association
Arkansas Medical Society
California Medical Association
Colorado Medical Society
Connecticut State Medical Society
Medical Society of Delaware
Medical Society of the District of Columbia
Florida Medical Association
Medical Association of Georgia
Hawaii Medical Association
Idaho Medical Association
Illinois State Medical Society
Indiana State Medical Association
Iowa Medical Society
Kentucky Medical Association
Louisiana State Medical Society
MedChi, The Maryland State Medical Society
Massachusetts Medical Society
Michigan State Medical Society
Minnesota Medical Association
Mississippi State Medical Association
Missouri State Medical Association
Montana Medical Association
Nebraska Medical Association
Medical Society of New Jersey
New Mexico Medical Society
Medical Society of the State of New York
North Carolina Medical Society
North Dakota Medical Association
Ohio State Medical Association
Oklahoma State Medical Association
Oregon Medical Association
Pennsylvania Medical Society
Rhode Island Medical Society
South Carolina Medical Association
South Dakota State Medical Association
Tennessee Medical Association
Texas Medical Association
Vermont Medical Society
Medical Society of Virginia
Washington State Medical Association
West Virginia State Medical Association
Wisconsin Medical Society
Wyoming Medical Society

National Medical (Specialty) Societies
AMDA—The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine
American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
American Academy of Dermatology Association
American Academy of Emergency Medicine
American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
American Academy of Family Physicians
American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
American Academy of Neurology
American Academy of Ophthalmology
American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
American Academy of Pain Medicine
American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
American Academy of Sleep Medicine
American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons
American Association of Neurological Surgeons
American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine
American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons
American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
American College of Cardiology
American College of Emergency Physicians
American College of Gastroenterology
American College of Lifestyle Medicine
American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics
American College of Mohs Surgery
American College of Physicians
American College of Radiation Oncology
American College of Radiology
American College of Rheumatology
American College of Surgeons
American Epilepsy Society
American Gastroenterological Association
American Geriatrics Society
American Medical Women's Association
American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society
American Osteopathic Association
American Psychiatric Association
American Society for Clinical Pathology
American Society for Dermatologic Surgery Association
American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
American Society of Addiction Medicine
American Society of Anesthesiologists
American Society of Dermatopathology
American Society of General Surgeons
American Society of Nephrology
American Society of Nuclear Cardiology
American Society of Plastic Surgeons
American Society of Retina Specialists
American Society of Transplant Surgeons
American Thoracic Society
American Urogynecologic Society
American Urological Association
American Vein & Lymphatic Society
American Venous Forum
AMGA—American Medical Group Association
Association of American Medical Colleges
Association for Clinical Oncology
College of American Pathologists
Congress of Neurological Surgeons
Heart Rhythm Society
International Pain and Spine Intervention Society
International Society for Advancement of Spine Surgery
Medical Group Management Association
North American Neuromodulation Society
North American Spine Society
Outpatient Endovascular and Interventional Society
Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions
Society for Vascular Surgery
Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons
Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography
Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance
Society of Hospital Medicine
The Society of Thoracic Surgeons