The Partnership to Empower Physician-Led Care (PEPC) has long advocated for payment parity between physician offices and hospital outpatient departments as one way to level the playing field for independent physicians. Site specific payment policies drive consolidation, higher costs for Medicare and further stacks the deck against independent physicians and practices. That is why we have long advocated for site neutral payment policies in Medicare.
We also recognize, however, that the physician payment landscape is complex. Medicare Part B payment rates are inadequate and also unsustainable for physicians, especially those in small and independent practices. When adjusted for inflation, Medicare reimbursement for physician services has declined 29% since 2001. Without broader reform to the Physician Fee Schedule, including a full Medicare Economic Index (MEI) update, Congress must commit to putting 100% of the savings from any site neutral policy back into Part B payment. Without that commitment, site neutral policies simply take resources out of the health care system and cannot be supported.
Sens. Hassan (D-NH) and Cassidy’s (R-LA) site neutral framework can be found here.