Congress takes first steps to address Medicare cuts

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) final 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) included cuts to services provided by occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) and dozens of other Medicare health care providers. AOTA is working with a broad coalition of health providers and Congress to stop these cuts and to give Part B providers an increase to account for the high inflation of the past year.

Congressional Action

In 2020 and 2021, Congress took action to stop pending cuts by adding funding to the fee schedule. Because of this, scheduled payment cuts for occupational therapy services in those years were lessened, but rates were still reduced in 2020 and again in 2021. Although we are grateful for these fixes, we have made it clear to Congress that the profession cannot sustain another year of payment reductions. Over the last few months, we have seen positive signs that they will step in before the end of the year:

• In mid-September 2022, the “Supporting Medicare Providers Act” (H.R. 8800), was introduced by Congressman Ami Bera and Congressman Larry Bucshon. This legislation would stop the upcoming 4.42% cut to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. In early November, this bill had more than 85 cosponsors.
• The first week of November 46 Senators sent a letter to Senate leadership urging them to take action to address payment challenges to ensure, “providers have the resources they need to keep their doors open for seniors and families. They also mentioned that going forward, there must be long-term payment reform.
• In addition to Senate comments about prioritizing long-term payment reform, a group of House Members put out a request for information (RFI) on how to reform the current Part B payment structure. AOTA along with other health care stake holders submitted their thoughts on the current payment system and recommendations for needed changes. RFIs such as this one are usually the first step on reforming a system.

Urgent Action Needed

Between now and the end of 2022, there are many issues that can take away Congress’s focus on the Fee Schedule. We will work to make sure that they understand the magnitude of these repeated cuts, but we also need your help. If Members of Congress hear from their constituents, they will put pressure on their leadership to ensure that action is taken. Please write to them and ask them to stop the reckless cuts to health care providers, and to preserve access to care for Medicare beneficiaries.