Advocacy in Action

Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced an extension of the 2023 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) data submission period and a reopening of the 2023 MIPS Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances (EUC) exception application due to the Change Healthcare cybersecurity incident.

The American Medical Association (AMA) Physician Practice Information (PPI) Survey is nearing completion, and we urgently need all selected physicians to actively engage in this effort.

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means convened a hearing on March 12th to examine opportunities for enhancing access to care at home for patients in rural and underserved communities.

A bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers have introduced the Telehealth Modernization Act of 2024 (S. 3967/H.R. 7623), which would make permanent certain Medicare flexibilities for telehealth services that were initially authorized in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

On March 9, 2024, President Biden signed into law H.R. 4366, known as the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024,” to avert a partial government shutdown. The $460 billion spending package includes a 1.68% reduction to the 3.37% cut to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) conversion factor that took effect January 1, 2024. The legislation is effective as of March 9, 2024, and is not retroactive to January 1, 2024.

On February 29th, Congress passed the fourth interim spending measure of fiscal year 2024, averting the threat of a partial government shutdown ahead of the first government funding deadline on March 1^st.

The Heart Rhythm Society, the American College of Cardiology, and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions are administering a survey on behalf of the American Medical Association (AMA) Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) for percutaneous transcatheter closure of the left atrial appendage (LAAC).

Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Thune (R-S.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), and Mark Warner (D-Va.) recently announced the formation of a working group to investigate and propose long-term reforms to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and make necessary updates to the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA).

With the culmination of many clinical trials, recent and pending Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, and growing clinical interest, pulsed field ablation (PFA) for the treatment of atrial fibrillation has garnered a great deal of attention in the field of cardiology, especially electrophysiology.

On Friday, February 16th, HRS leadership participated in a meeting with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) officials to discuss patient access to dual-chamber leadless pacemakers in the outpatient setting.