No long-term SGR solution forthcoming, but could it link to CHIP?

Any hopes-- however remote-- of Congress passing a permanent repeal of Medicare's sustainable growth formula by March 31 were doused at the recent advocacy meeting of the American Medical Association. Rep. Tom Price, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, told AMA members that there's just not enough time to get a full repeal done before the deadline and the most likely scenario was a four-to-six-month patch. Instead, Price said he thinks a full repeal of the physician payment system is likely by the end of the fiscal year (Sept. 30) and that it will be tied to extending funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)., which expires at the end of September (end of FY 2015).