The health care reform plan Congress adopted last week failed to address planned cuts in Medicare payments to physicians, which could threaten undermine the program's effectiveness, U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander said today.
Mr. Alexander, R-Tenn., the chairman of the Senate Republican Caucus, chided Senate Democrats for not finding a away out of the 21.3 percent cut in Medicare payments. The cuts in will begin on Thursday, although Senators could retroactively boost the doctor payments following when they return from a two-week recess.
"The only way the new health care law avoided adding to our deficit is because it doesn't pay doctors to take care of patients," he said. "My view is that if we find savings in Medicare, the first thing we ought to do is make a 10-year plan for properly paying doctors who see Medicare patients."
A health plan that doesn't pay doctors more "is like getting a ticket for a bus that only goes half way to where you need to go," he said, because too many physicians may opt not to continue see Medicaid or Medicare patients.
"Of course, you've got to pay the doctors so there will be a proposal to avoid that 21 percent cut and when it comes we'll borrow the money from China to pay for it, if it passes," he said.
See complete coverage in Thursday's Times Free Press.