Welcome to The ACP Advocate,
Physicians won an important victory earlier this year when Congress ended the sustainable growth rate approach to Medicare reimbursement. Now, as implementation of its replacement gets underway, the ACP is advising federal officials in hopes of preserving flexibility and protecting those who provide and receive health care.
Normally, CMS would launch into a rule-making process at this point in order to put things together. Instead, they asked for public comments before even getting to that step through a request for information.
ACP responded in a Nov. 17 letter with 33 pages of recommendations and guiding principles. See details and a link to the letter in our first article today.
In other advocacy and policy news today, we examine proposed insurance company mergers. ACP believes that potentially shrinking the nation’s top five insurers to just three could pose health care risks. In fact, ACP worries that insurance consolidation could diminish negotiation options for physicians and bring higher premiums for patients.
Until our December 18 issue – which will feature a look at the new Medicare value-based payment system and their impact on Meaningful Use requirements – and for more coverage of what's happening in Washington, take a look at my award-winning blog, The ACP Advocate Blog by Bob Doherty. You can also follow me on Twitter @BobDohertyACP.
As always, please send your feedback and suggestions on this newsletter to: TheACPAdvocate@acponline.org.
Yours truly,
Bob Doherty
Senior Vice President
Governmental Affairs and Public Policy
American College of Physicians |
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| In the news |
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Proposed Insurance Company Mergers Pose Health Care Risks, ACP Notes
Consolidation could diminish negotiation options for physicians and bring higher premiums for patients
Anthem and Cigna want to merge, and so do Aetna and Humana, potentially shrinking the nation's top five insurers to just three. Call it merger mania -- or, as the American College of Physicians sees it, a s... (read more)
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| About this newsletter |
| The ACP Advocate is an e-newsletter, edited by the College's Washington, DC governmental affairs division, created to provide you, our members, with succinct news about public policy issues affecting internal medicine and patient care. To learn more about ACP's Advocacy and to access the ACP Advocate archives, go to www.acponline.org/advocacy. |
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| In focus |
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Round 3--ACA Open Enrollment Season |
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Open enrollment for 2016 in the ACA is underway and ACP members can play important roles. The ACP website has resources for physicians to help their patients enroll through the ACA marketplace. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services offers a fact sheet about consumer-oriented changes to the healthcare.gov site and a pocket guide for physicians and other health professionals. |
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It's Also Medicare Open Enrollment Season |
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CMS has provided this Q&A for details about this year's Medicare Open Enrollment. It may provide answers you and many of your patients are seeking. |
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