MAILED TO ALL ILLINOIS REPRESENTATIVES IN THE U.S. HOUSE AND SENATE

September 8, 2006
Dear Member of Congress:

As you know, Medicare payments to physicians are set to be slashed by more than five percent at year’s end unless you and your colleagues in Congress provide the necessary leadership to prevent the cuts. Congress has stopped similar cuts in past years, and we strongly urge you to prevent this rollback before you return home for the November elections.

ISMS strongly believes that before Congress breaks at the end of September, it must pass and send to the president for enactment a positive Medicare payment update for physicians, effective January 1, 2007, to reflect annual increases in medical practice costs as recommended by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC).

Under current law, further sharp cuts are projected through 2015. Medicare physician payments are projected to be slashed by a total of 37%, or over $200 billion. While physician payments plummet, conservative estimates from the federal government show practice costs will increase 22 percent over this period.

In 2007, Illinois would lose $120 million in funding for health care services provided to seniors and the disabled if Congress allows these cuts to occur. By 2015, Illinois would lose more than $7.6 billion in health care funding. In addition, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that Medicare physician payment cuts will negatively impact nearly 108,000 Illinois employees.

Physicians are the foundation of our nation’s health care system, and a stable environment for physicians’ services is critical. Currently, the average 2006 Medicare physician payment rates are about the same as they were in 2001. Payment cuts would further destabilize the Medicare program in Illinois and put patient access at risk. According to a recent American Medical Association survey, if payments are cut as projected in 2007, 45 percent of physicians will either decrease or stop accepting new Medicare patients in 2007 and 50 percent of physicians plan to defer the purchase of the information technology proposed by the Medicare program. Your constituents, the senior citizens of Illinois, can ill afford reduced access to their physicians.

This issue must be addressed before Congress recesses in September, rather than relying on the uncertainty of a lame-duck Congress to avert the cuts. During the 2002 lame-duck session, Congress failed to act, and we cannot afford a repeat of this history. As leaders of the Illinois State Medical Society, we would like to know what to tell our physician members if Congress recesses at the end of September without having taken action to stem these cuts.

The members of the ISMS Board of Trustees would like to express our gratitude for the important work you do for the citizens of Illinois – your constituents and our patients. We are once again depending on your leadership to ensure that access to critical health care for our state’s seniors is not jeopardized. Congress must take immediate steps to provide a positive update based on the Medicare Economic Index.

Sincerely,

Twenty North Michigan Avenue, Suite 700 Chicago, Illinois 60602 Telephone: 312-782-1654 Toll Free: 800-782-ISMS Fax: 312-782-2028