ASCO Issues Statement Praising the Senate Repeal of SGR
In a statement, the American Society of Clinical Oncology praised the U.S. Senate’s 92-to-8 approval of legislation to repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate formula.
ASCO President Peter Paul Yu, MD, FACP, FASCO, said, “Today's courageous vote by the U.S. Senate to finally end the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula is a vote for the millions of patients with cancer who depend on Medicare to help them fight their disease. With Congress passing this historic legislation to finally end the 13-year SGR roller coaster ride, Medicare beneficiaries and their physicians can breathe easier, knowing that they will no longer face the perennial threat of payment cuts that risk disruption of care and cause anxiety among patients.
“We praise the 92 Senators for voting ‘yes’ on The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (H.R. 2), and for joining the 392 House members who voted earlier to support this long-awaited legislation. The Congressional bipartisan, bicameral leadership that forged this much-anticipated resolution has taken an important step to restore stability and confidence in Medicare.
“ASCO looks forward to working with policymakers to ensure that this new law is effectively implemented and paves the way to new payment models that foster high-quality, value-based health care for all Americans with cancer.”
President Obama’s anticipated signature on H.R. 2 effectively reverses the 21% cut in physician payments, required under the now repealed SGR formula, with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services expected to begin processing claims immediately.
The content in this post has not been reviewed by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) and does not necessarily reflect the ideas and opinions of ASCO®.
