Congress passes another temporary payment fix

Last night, Congress passed legislation staving off the 21 percent Medicare cuts until June 1 — another temporary fix to the SGR-based payment formula.

This vote was the latest of several moves to push back the cuts. Twice this year, CMS has had to step in and tell contractors to hold claims for 10 business days until Congress can pass a fix. The most recent period ended this week.

And once that temporary fix expires again, Congress can pass another short-term solution. Or perhaps it is really time to change the flawed SGR formula once and for all?