A 21.2% Medicare pay cut will take effect April 1 after the Senate failed to pass a bill on Friday March 26 extending the effective date to May 1 before lawmakers recessed for 2 weeks.
When Congress returns to work April 12, Senate Democrats will try to pass the 1-month extension again and make it retroactive to April 1.
The 21.2% reduction in reimbursement taking effect on April 1, 2010 does not necessarily mean that physicians will experience the Medicare meltdown everyone is predicting. When Congress goes back to work on April 12, Senate Democrats will try to pass the 1-month extension again and make it retroactive to April 1. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has announced that it will freeze payments on physician Medicare claims for the first 10 business days of April and then pay the full amount — as if the reduction never occurred — if the 1-month extension passes in the Senate.