http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/ The Policy Journal of the Health Sphere Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:04:42 -0500 hourly 1 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/comment-page-1/#comment-15703 Health Affairs Blog Wed, 20 Feb 2008 18:03:38 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/#comment-15703 [...] Editor’s Note: In the post below, Paul Ginsburg, the president of the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), begins a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. In the coming days, the series will feature posts by Robert Berenson, Jay Crosson, Mina Matin, Frank Opelka, Eugene Rich, and Gail Wilensky. [...] [...] Editor’s Note: In the post below, Paul Ginsburg, the president of the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC), begins a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. In the coming days, the series will feature posts by Robert Berenson, Jay Crosson, Mina Matin, Frank Opelka, Eugene Rich, and Gail Wilensky. [...]

]]> http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/comment-page-1/#comment-15700 Health Affairs Blog Wed, 20 Feb 2008 18:01:56 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/#comment-15700 [...] Editor’s Note: This is the fourth post in a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. Paul Ginsburg, Robert Berenson, and Mina Matin have contributed earlier posts, and in the coming days the series will feature posts by Frank Opelka, Eugene Rich, and Gail Wilensky. [...] [...] Editor’s Note: This is the fourth post in a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. Paul Ginsburg, Robert Berenson, and Mina Matin have contributed earlier posts, and in the coming days the series will feature posts by Frank Opelka, Eugene Rich, and Gail Wilensky. [...]

]]> http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/comment-page-1/#comment-15695 Health Affairs Blog Wed, 20 Feb 2008 17:55:01 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/#comment-15695 [...] Editor’s Note: This is the fifth post in a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. Paul Ginsburg, Robert Berenson, Mina Matin, and Jay Crosson have contributed earlier posts, and in the coming days the series will feature posts by Eugene Rich and Gail Wilensky.  [...] [...] Editor’s Note: This is the fifth post in a Health Affairs Blog series on Medicare physician compensation and the Sustainable Growth Rate mechanism. Paul Ginsburg, Robert Berenson, Mina Matin, and Jay Crosson have contributed earlier posts, and in the coming days the series will feature posts by Eugene Rich and Gail Wilensky.  [...]

]]> http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/comment-page-1/#comment-15291 Friday Blog Roundup « The Pump Handle Fri, 15 Feb 2008 22:01:58 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/#comment-15291 [...] Health Affairs has posts by Mina Matin, Robert Berenson, and Paul B. Ginsburg about the Sustainable Growth Rate (the formula that’s supposed to keep Medicare physician services payments in line with national economic growth – but that Congress keeps overriding to avoid making large cuts to physician payments). [...] [...] Health Affairs has posts by Mina Matin, Robert Berenson, and Paul B. Ginsburg about the Sustainable Growth Rate (the formula that’s supposed to keep Medicare physician services payments in line with national economic growth – but that Congress keeps overriding to avoid making large cuts to physician payments). [...]

]]> http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/comment-page-1/#comment-15281 Arvind Cavale Fri, 15 Feb 2008 19:55:27 +0000 http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2008/02/14/splitting-the-sustainable-growth-rate-a-proposal-to-strengthen-medicare-and-primary-care/#comment-15281 You must be commended about your writing as a Resident. Your argument for a split SGR is very logical based on the logic of such a concept as SGR. As a specialist who primarily uses E&M codes just like primary care physicians, I will tend to benefit from splitting the SGR. However, I feel that the real argument should not be between PCP's and specialists. But rather the question as to why the SGR is applied only to physician payments and not to payments to other services such as hospitals, DME providers, etc. These entities keep getting yearly adjustments based on CPI averages. So why does that not contribute to Medicare's expenditures? Your work would carry much more weight if it addressed that issue. You must be commended about your writing as a Resident. Your argument for a split SGR is very logical based on the logic of such a concept as SGR. As a specialist who primarily uses E&M codes just like primary care physicians, I will tend to benefit from splitting the SGR. However, I feel that the real argument should not be between PCP’s and specialists. But rather the question as to why the SGR is applied only to physician payments and not to payments to other services such as hospitals, DME providers, etc. These entities keep getting yearly adjustments based on CPI averages. So why does that not contribute to Medicare’s expenditures? Your work would carry much more weight if it addressed that issue.

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