Surgeons Give Six Reasons Why Senate Reform Plan Will Worsen Care

Officials for CMS were asked to respond Wednesday, but press officer Joe Kuchler says they could not comment on the accusations on such short notice.

2. Under the Senate plan, Medicare would give 10% bonus payments to primary care and family physicians as a workforce incentive, but half of that bonus would be financed by cuts in surgeons' pay. This would have an especially discouraging impact on the workforce of surgeons in underserved and rural areas.

3. The Senate plan would reduce payments to doctors who have the highest utilization of procedures "without regard for patient acuity or complexity."

4. The Senate proposal would establish an independent Medicare Commission whose decisions would become law without a separate vote of Congress. These individuals would not be elected, and would have no accountability to the public, yet would get to decide what treatments or procedures would be reimbursed under Medicare and which ones would be categorically denied, Eastman says.

5. The Senate plan would establish a budget-neutral value-based payment modifier, which CMS does not currently have the capability to implement. It also would place the provision on an unrealistic and unachievable timeline.

6. Under the Senate proposal, physicians would pay a fee to cover a background check in order to participate in Medicare, despite the fact that doctors already pay fees for training, licensure, and board certification.

Eastman sums up the groups' adamant objections, saying: "We are 100% behind quality improvement—it is our heritage and a constant focal point for surgeons—but it is foolhardy to mandate an unsuccessful program."