Congress reaches deal on SGR extension

posted 12.22.11

According to multiple news sources, Congress has reached a last-minute compromise that will avert the 27.4 percent cut in Medicare physician payment that would have gone through Jan. 1, 2012.

The U.S. House of Representatives agreed to vote on and pass the Senate tax bill, which will provide a two-month extension of the Medicare physician payment rate as well as a two-month extension of Social Security payroll tax cuts and federal unemployment benefits.

As reported previously, the House passed a bill on Dec. 13 that would have provided a 1 percent increase in Medicare payment to physicians for the next two years, but it was financed by repealing or scaling back programs enacted by federal health reform-a deal breaker for Senate Democrats. The House rejected the Senate short-term extension on Dec. 20, instead calling for a conference committee to iron out the differences between the two bills.

Under extreme pressure from Senate Republicans and the Obama administration, the House accepted the two-month extension. The Senate has agreed to appoint its conference committee members to negotiate an extension through 2012.