Here are five major updates on physician pay cuts:
1. Congress halved 2024’s 3.4% Medicare pay cut for physicians to roughly 1.7% in a $460 billion spending package released in March. The cut comes on top of last year’s 2% Medicare physician pay reduction.
2. Many physicians were disappointed by Congress’ move. The American Medical Association said in a blog post that the cut was not enough as the cost of running a practice is becoming unsustainable for many physicians.
3. The original pay cut, released in CMS’ 2024 Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule Nov. 2, cut overall physician pay by 1.25% and updated the Medicare conversion factor to $32.74.
4. Additionally, many physicians are facing more pay cuts from the cost-performance category of the merit-based incentive payment system, which could reduce Medicare payments by up to 9%.
5. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission released a report to Congress in March recommending a roughly 3% year-over-year pay increase for physicians.
