Dear Representative Abraham:
On behalf of the 22 undersigned organizations representing surgeons across the United States,
we urge Congress to take immediate action — in the current continuing resolution (CR) or
other must-pass legislation this year — to prevent steep Medicare physician payment cuts
that will greatly impact our specialties. Surgeons across the country are faced with a looming
uncertainty — in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic — about whether their Medicare
payments will be significantly decreased, beginning in January. Congress must act now while
there is still time to provide stability for these physicians, their practices, and their patients.
Policy changes affirmed in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) calendar year
(CY) 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule are detrimental to surgeons
and surgical patients, doubling down on policy finalized in the CY2020 MPFS that would cut
payments to specialty medicine. As currently proposed, CMS is increasing those cuts for 2021,
and nearly all surgical specialties will face additional reductions, for example, cardiac surgery
9%, thoracic surgery 8%, vascular surgery and neurosurgery 7%, ophthalmology 6%, and
surgeons that care for women with gynecologic and breast cancer.
Read full letter here
