Senate, House Leaders Introduce SGR Replacement Bill

Healthcare Informatics: Key leaders in the House and Senate have introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would permanently repeal the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula and consolidate several government-based quality reporting programs, including meaningful use.

The proposed bill, which is said to be “nearly identical” to bills introduced in the House and Senate last year that were ultimately amended or referred to committee, would repeal the SGR and institute a 0.5 percent payment update each year for five years. The SGR has been permanently patched 17 times in 11 years. The latest version is set to expire on March 31st.

Read article