ACOI Responds to Senate Finance White Paper on Physician Payment Reform; Prior Authorization Bill Reintroduced with Strong Support; ACOI Offers Input on GME Policy Changes.
Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) proposed rule. Your ACOI team will analyze the proposed rule to identify policies that could impact osteopathic internists, their practices and patients.
Take Action! The Community TEAMS Act has been introduced in the Senate; ACOI and AACOM promote shared policy priorities; ACOI asks House committee to consider step therapy bill.
ACOI President Promotes Osteopathic Medicine on Capitol Hill
ACOI President Robert T. Hasty, DO, FACOI, FACP, was on Capitol Hill May 22 to brief Congress about the critical role of osteopathic medicine in fulfilling the health care needs of Americans across the country, and in rural and underserved communities specifically.
As a member of the Primary Care Collaborative, the ACOI joined a statement in response to an April 11 hearing held by the Senate Finance Committee, “Bolstering Chronic Care through Medicare Physician Payment.”
In March, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released its annual report to Congress on Medicare payment, in which it reissued a recommendation that Congress should provide physicians next year with an inflationary update that reflects half of the Medicare Economic Index.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has adopted a comprehensive ban on non-compete clauses in employment contracts with no exceptions for the health care industry.
ACOI Joins Organizations in Asking for Farm Policies that Support Climate and Health
The ACOI has joined 80 organizations in support of farm policy that prioritizes affordable and nutritious food and clean air and water. In a letter to Congress, the organizations emphasized the intersection of important nutrition and conservation programs.
Physicians Have Until April 15 to Apply for 2023 MIPS Exception
Physicians have until April 15 to request a 2023 Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances exception due to the Change Healthcare cyberattack.
New Bill Supports Training Opportunities for Osteopathic Medicine
The ACOI is backing new legislation in Congress that would improve medical training opportunities for osteopathic and allopathic medical students in rural and medically underserved areas.
On February 21, Change Healthcare, which is owned by UnitedHealth Group (UHG), experienced a cyberattack that has taken its systems offline. Change’s IT platform connects health care providers and pharmacies with payers. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced physician practices impacted by the Change Healthcare cyberattack can request advanced Medicare payments to help with cash flow disruptions.
Since early 2023, ACOI, alongside the entire physician community, has been calling on Congress to stop the entire cut. Over the past six months, ACOI members sent more than 750 messages to Congress asking for payment cut relief.
