Ayotte Votes for Permanent "Doc Fix"

Press Release

In an overwhelming 92 to 8 vote last night, the U.S. Senate approved bipartisan legislation to permanently repeal and replace the "sustainable growth rate" (SGR) formula used to calculate reimbursements for doctors who treat Medicare patients. Since 2002, Congress has passed 17 temporary patches over the years to prevent steep reimbursement cuts for doctors. Without a fix before Wednesday, doctors would have experienced a 21 percent cut in Medicare reimbursement. The bill previously passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 392 to 37 and now goes to the president to be signed into law.

"For far too long, lawmakers have scrambled each year to ensure that American seniors continue to receive the medical care that they deserve, and that the doctors who treat those patients are paid for the services they provide," said Ayotte. "This legislation helps solve that problem by replacing the current flawed system of payments for Medicare physicians with a value-based system that pays doctors based on quality and accountability. The bill also provides two years of funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program and New Hampshire's Community Health Centers, allowing them to continue to serve Granite State families in need of quality health care."

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