In continuing coverage from previous editions of NAHU Newswire, the New York Times (7/7, A1, Pear) reports on its front page that “Congress returns to work this week with Medicare high on the agenda, and Senate Republicans under pressure after a barrage of radio and television advertisements blamed them for a 10.6 percent cut in payments to doctors who care for millions of older Americans.” The American Medical Association (AMA) launched the ad campaign, which “urge[d] Senate Republicans to reverse themselves, and help pass legislation to fend off the cut.” But President “Bush and many Republicans oppose the bill because it would finance an increase in doctors’ fees by reducing federal payments to insurance companies that offer private Medicare Advantage plans as an alternative to the traditional government-run Medicare program.”
Meanwhile, “Senate Democrats have vowed to bring the bill up again this week,” the Wall Street Journal (7/7, A2, Mathews) adds. As a result, “the spotlight will be on a handful of Republican senators who could potentially switch votes. Should the cuts remain in effect, the AMA has said that “many of its members would be reluctant to see new Medicare patients.”
In addition, last week, a leading member of the Democratic party, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), “accused Republicans of putting seniors and military families at risk by siding with President Bush against” the “measure to prevent Medicare cuts,” the AP (7/6, Davis) noted. Sen. Durbin stated, “It’s time for the Republican senators who are filibustering this measure to put our seniors and our military families ahead of private insurance companies, and let the Senate pass this bill as soon as possible.”
According to The Hill (7/4, Young), “The Senate Republican leadership, amid a negative public relations campaign being waged by Democrats and the nation’s physicians, urged Thursday that the Senate act quickly on a short-term solution to a cut in Medicare fees to doctors.” In a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), several GOP members wrote, “There is no reason for Congress to have recessed without addressing this important issue. Republicans have requested an extension of current law multiple times, and each time the majority objected.”
Focusing on Texas, the Houston Chronicle (7/4, Ackerman) reported that more “Texas doctors are opting out of Medicare, weary of the perennial fights over cuts in reimbursement.” A recent survey showed that just “58 percent of doctors in the state now accept new Medicare patients.” And, the Texas Medical Association predicted that “the percentage will continue to plummet if Congress doesn’t arrive at a long-term solution soon.”
