CMS releases proposal for 2009 Medicare physician fee schedule

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released its proposal for changes under the 2009 Medicare physician fee schedule. The proposal includes a statutory reduction in spending of 5.4 percent. Total Medicare spending under the 2009 physician fee schedule is projected at $54 billion, down 5 percent from the $57 billion projected for 2008. CMS is also proposing additional improvements to the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI). Increasing the number of conditions covered by measures groups to nine; adding rheumatoid arthritis, care during surgery, and back pain to the original measures groups are among the suggested changes.
Read More...