Nurse Practitioners Urge Congress To Reform Medicare Provider Reimbursment
AANP President Testifies Before U.S. House of Representatives
AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In his testimony today before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Health, Ken Miller, PhD, RN, CFNP, FAAN, FAANP, President of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) reaffirmed the organization's support of the "SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2014" (H.R. 4015) proposed in the last Congress.
The bill would permanently repeal the flawed "sustainable growth rate" (SGR) formula for Medicare Part B, eliminating serious cuts in reimbursement that would have grave consequences for both Medicare recipients and providers, such as nurse practitioners, according to AANP.
In addition, the bill would further reform the Medicare Payment System for all Part B providers, including the nation's 205,000 nurse practitioners. It includes nurse practitioners in the first year of the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and ensures that nurse practitioner-led Patient Centered Medical Homes are eligible to receive incentive payments for the management of patients with chronic disease.
"By utilizing provider neutral language and including proposals that reflect the full partnership of nurse practitioners in the Medicare Program, this bill better ensures the unobstructed delivery of the high-quality, cost-efficient health care services that our seniors need," said Dr. Miller.
Nurse practitioners serve as primary, specialty and acute care providers across the country. They assess, order, perform and interpret diagnostic and laboratory tests; make diagnoses; initiate and manage treatment; prescribe medications and non-pharmacologic treatments; and counsel patients, their families and communities. More than 50 years of peer-reviewed, independent research has shown nurse practitioners to be safe and cost-effective clinicians, with patient outcomes similar and sometimes better than those of physicians.
The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) is the largest professional membership organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) of all specialties. It represents the interests of more than 205,000 NPs, including approximately 56,000 individual members and 200 organizations, providing a unified networking platform and advocating for their role as providers of high-quality, cost-effective, comprehensive, patient-centered and personalized health care. The organization provides legislative leadership at the local, state and national levels, advancing health policy; promoting excellence in practice, education and research; and establishing standards that best serve NP patients and other health care consumers.
For more information visit aanp.org. To locate a nurse practitioner in your area visit npfinder.com.
SOURCE American Association of Nurse Practitioners
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