Tell Congress to Stabilize Medicare Clinician Payments

The bipartisan Provider Reimbursement Stability Act (H.R. 8163), introduced by Reps. Greg Murphy, MD (R-NC) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY), aims to modernize Medicare clinician payment by updating outdated budget neutrality rules and improving stability for practices and patients.

If passed, the legislation would:

• Raise the budget neutrality threshold from $20 million to $54.3 million, with periodic indexing to the Medicare Economic Index (MEI). Currently, budget neutrality dictates that if spending in one area exceeds $20 million, it must be offset by other health care costs. The $20 million budget-neutrality threshold has remained unchanged since the early 1990s and has never been adjusted for inflation. 
• Limit year-to-year variance in physician payments to no more than 2.5%, helping practices plan for the future.
• Require the Department of Health and Human Services to refine budget neutrality adjustments using claims data for newly unbundled codes.
• Update key inputs for practice expenses, including clinical wages, medical supplies, and equipment, at least every five years.

Together, these changes are designed to make Medicare payment more predictable, data-driven, and aligned with the realities of delivering care.

Contact your members of Congress and urge them to support H.R. 8163 today.