Dear Members and Stakeholders,
Once again, the time has come to amplify our efforts and voices to prevent the crippling cuts that are planned to Medicare. Your time is valuable, so I will cut to the chase of what we need.
We have Representative Cohen signed on as a co-sponsor of H.R. 879. This bill’s primary intent is to add an annual inflationary update, as physicians are the only providers whose payments do NOT receive this annual update. We now need to urge Rep. Kustoff to co-sponsor this legislation, as it is possible it will be rolled into the budget reconciliation vote expected to happen next week.
You have two options for contact. Please feel free to add personal context to any of the templated language we offer below. Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
1) Call Rep. Kustoff’s office at (202) 225-4714.
2) Click here to email Rep. Kustoff, and then feel free to copy and paste our language below. Please note, this is particularly valuable if you are a constituent of his. If you are not a constituent, I recommend you call the number above.
Script to copy, recite, or read:
Dear Representative Kustoff,
I write to you as a constituent representing myself, over 2,500 physicians in the Memphis area, and the patients those physicians treat.
I am thankful that Congress passed the 2024 appropriations package which included a 1.68% reduction to the 3.39% cut to Medicare physician payments that went into effect on January 1. While the relief was welcomed, our patients and colleagues in medicine are still at risk.
Medicare physician payments have lagged 29% behind the rate of inflation growth since 2001. To date,we are the only providers who do not receive an inflationary update annually.
That is the intent behind H.R. 879. I am simply asking to be able to keep up with increasing costs of high quality patient care. While this bill is exclusive to Medicare, it is important to note that commercial health plans tend to follow Medicare as it pertains to payments. Failure to pass this bill will likely lead to an even greater negative impact to my practice.
Thank you for your consideration and service.
Sincerely,
Clint Cummins, CEO
Memphis Medical Society
