CMS Working to Avoid Disruption in Medicare Physician Fee Schedules - March 2, 2010

CMS is working with Congress and others to avoid disruption in the delivery of health care services and payment of claims for physicians and other providers of services paid under the Medicare physician fee schedule (MPFS). The last MPFS fix, which Congress adopted in December, expired on February 28. With Sen. Jim Bunning blocking a move to extend the fix, a 21.2% pay cut in the MPFS is officially in place for all claims after March 1. To prevent these cuts from actually taking place, CMS has instructed its contractors to hold claims containing services paid under the MPFS for the first 10 business days of March to allow Congress the time to adopt a legislative fix. Congress is currently working on several bills: one that would forestall the cuts until March 29, 2010, and another that would postpone them until September 30, 2010.