The ACC joined a statement with 13 other medical specialty groups, calling on Congress and the current presidential administration to improve patient access for all and address the broken Medicare payment system threatening the financial health and viability of medical practices across the U.S.

"We are at an inflection point," the statement reads. "Continuing to perpetuate the broken physician payment system will likely be the death knell for the ability of physicians to sustain clinical practices."

The statement recommends that policymakers implement an annual payment adjustment based on the Medicare Economic Index as physician payments have declined by more than 33% over the past 20 years when adjusting for inflation. It also suggests reforming budget neutrality requirements, which have burdened the Medicare physician payment system over the years. The current $20 million budget neutrality threshold has not been updated since it was established in 1989.

While these actions will not completely resolve the challenges posed by the current Medicare payment system, the societies state these initial steps will help to stabilize the health care system and "protect patient access to high quality care and patient choice while preserving the patient-physician relationship and physician autonomy."

Read the complete statement.

Visit ACC's Establish Sustainable Payment Practices webpage for more on ACC Advocacy's recent efforts and ways you can take action.

Clinical Topics: Cardiovascular Care Team

Keywords: ACC Advocacy, Physician-Patient Relations, Physicians, Medicare