Grassley releases summary of physician and health-care professional provisions of Republican Medicare proposal

M E M O R A N D U M

TO: Reporters and Editors
RE: Medicare legislation
DA: Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The attached document contains a description of the physician and healthprofession-related provisions that will be in the Senate Republican Medicare package. Thislegislative package will continue the 0.5 percent increase in the Medicare physician fee schedulethrough December 31, 2008, and it will provide an additional 1.1 percent update for 2009, asrecommended by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC).

Additional information about the Senate Republican Medicare package will be providedas it's available.

Senator Grassley is leading the development of a Republican-backed proposal followingthe decision in May by Senate Democratic leaders to discontinue bipartisan discussions on aMedicare bill. Senator Grassley would like to restart those negotiations, but in their absence hasbeen putting together an alternative proposal to try to make sure doctor payment cuts don't takeeffect on June 30 and jeopardize patient access to care for Medicare beneficiaries in rural andurban areas nationwide.

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