Congress will once again put off a huge cut in Medicare payments to physicians, but that will not solve the underlying problems of fee-for-service payment.  

The trustees report from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services out Monday uses strong language to describe the uncertainty of its predictions in both the short- and long-term for the medical insurance program aimed at America's seniors.

With 48.3 million people covered by Medicare in 2011 -- and...

The sustainable growth rate legislation should be replaced with sensible policies to reduce unnecessary spending and improve incentives for better health care.

Today, American Enterprise Institute (AEI) health expert and practicing physician Scott Gottlieb, MD explained in testimony before the House Ways & Means Committee and in an article on American.com, AEI's online journal, the harmful impact that the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) will have on Medicare beneficiaries and health care providers.

By next year, about two-thirds of American physicians will be working as salaried employees of large groups and hospitals. This movement has been underway for years. Over the last decade, the number of independent physicians was falling by about 2% a year. But these trends are now accelerating. 

Unless Congress acts soon, Medicare fees paid to physicians will be cut automatically 10 percent next year, with additional cuts of about 5 percent every year beginning in 2009. Organized medicine has made it clear that cuts of such magnitude would adversely affect senior access to health care as physicians...

The president took an extra week to develop his budget, but the extra time was apparently not enough to yield Medicare policies that could produce real savings. Competitive bidding offers a better solution, but only if we are willing to give it a chance.

Researchers and clinicians seeking to strengthen these relationships with industry deserve to be celebrated, not demonized.