Bush administration freezing cuts in Medicare fees

The Bush administration has announced it is freezing a scheduled 10% fee cut for doctors who treat Medicare patients, giving Congress time to act to prevent the cuts when lawmakers return from a July 4 recess. Kevin Schweers, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will hold doctors' Medicare claims for services delivered on or after July 1. Claims for services received on or before June 30 will be processed as usual, he said. Congress, not willing to face millions of angry seniors at the polls in November, will almost certainly act quickly when it returns to Washington to prevent the cuts in payments for doctors who treat Medicare patients.