WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), a senior member and former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, today participated in a hearing on chronic care and Medicare physician payment. Witnesses confirmed to Grassley the need to modernize Medicare rules and payments to ensure access to rural health care.
Read Grassley’s questions below. Skip to corresponding clips at the links.
Expanding Health Care Options in Rural Areas:
“I frequently hear from Iowans about poor access to health care services, especially in rural areas. In many states, pharmacists, audiologists and more are licensed and trained to perform certain medical services that Medicare currently doesn’t pay for. Example: right now, pharmacists cannot get paid under Medicare Part B rules for providing wellness screenings, immunizations, or diabetes management. I support modernizing federal rules.
“[Dr. Steven Furr, American Academy of Family Physicians, and Ms. Melanie Matthews, Physicians of Southwest Washington]: Should modernizing federal rules to match licensing and training laws be part of efforts to strengthen and improve health outcomes for patients with chronic conditions?”
Protecting Rural State Medicare Reimbursement:
“I’ve championed efforts to ensure Iowa physicians and other rural states get paid fairly for the health care services they deliver. Iowans pay the same amount of money into Medicare as everyone else. The physician labor market is not local, but national, especially with the expansion of tele-health. Through the end of this year, Congress has established the geographic practice cost index (GPCI) floor to ensure rural state physicians receive a fairer reimbursement.
“Dr. Furr and [Dr. Amol Navathe, University of Pennsylvania]: Is CMS using the more current and complete input data for GPCI to determine physician payment?
“Currently, 36 states have statewide areas for GPCI and don’t distinguish more urban areas within a rural state. Should there be more geographic areas to account for this?”
Improving Access to Chronic Care through Medicare Advantage:
“I’m going to shorten up my introduction by just asking this question: Is Medicare Advantage an effective model to expand and improve chronic care management services for seniors while also lowering Medicare spending?”
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