House passes Medicare physician payment rate extension bill

18 March 2010

On Wed., March 17, the U.S. House of Representatives passed by voice vote H.R. 4851, the Continuing Extension Act of 2010, which was introduced by Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI). The bill would further extend current Medicare physician payment rates, the sustainable growth rate (SGR), through April 30, again postponing the 21.3 percent cut that was scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1. If passed by the Senate, this will be the third effort by Congress to provide additional time to develop and pass a long-term solution to the SGR formula.