AARP Illinois Applauds U.S. Senate for Preserving Access to Doctors for People in Medicare

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Dec 08, 2010, 07:47 ET

Calls on U.S. House to join Senate and stop Medicare doctor pay cut

CHICAGO, Dec. 8, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AARP Illinois Senior State Director Bob Gallo today released a statement applauding the U.S. Senate for passing legislation that will preserve access to doctors for people in Medicare by stopping a scheduled 25 percent cut in reimbursement. The statement follows:

"We thank the U.S. Senate for working together on a bipartisan basis to stop a drastic pay cut to physicians treating people in Medicare. By stopping the cut for a year, the Senate has given seniors peace of mind that they can continue to see the doctor they trust.

"We now call on the U.S. House to act swiftly and pass this legislation. Without action in the House, doctors in Medicare will face a 25 percent pay cut on January 1, which could drive more doctors out of Medicare.

"On behalf of the 1.8 million Illinoisans in Medicare and the over 47,000 doctors and other professionals caring for them, we thank the U.S. Senate for protecting seniors' access to their doctors and urge the U.S. House to do the same.

"Over the past three weeks, thousands of AARP activists in Illinois have contacted their Members of Congress, generating over 2,400 calls and over 1,700 emails to express the importance of a stable physician payment system. But our work is far from over.

"We renew our call on Congress to make replacing this unstable payment system an urgent priority next year so we can ensure greater stability for the doctor-patient relationship in Medicare."

For more information, visit www.aarp.org/il.

SOURCE AARP Illinois