The Senate has adjourned until April 13, 2015 without taking action on the House-approved Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act, which would repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula, reform Medicare physician payments, and make other policy changes. In the interim, the 21.2% physician fee schedule cut mandated by the SGR will be triggered for services furnished on or after April 1, 2015. In a recent update, CMS reminded providers that electronic claims are not paid earlier than 14 calendar days (29 days for paper claims) after the date of receipt, so applicable claims will be held at least until the Senate returns, but the timing of any Senate action is still unclear. CMS intends to provide an update by April 11, 2015 on the status of Congressional action to avert the negative update and the agency's next steps.
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