Preserving and Protecting Medicare

WASHINGTON – Today, the House of Representatives passed legislation, with strong bipartisan support, to help strengthen Medicare. This legislation will stop a 21% cut to reimbursement rates for doctors who see Medicare patients that would have occurred on March 31. These cuts would have negatively impacted Mainers who rely on these Medicare services. Congressman Bruce Poliquin released the following statement:

“For the last decade, Washington has kicked this can down the road and left Maine seniors who rely on Medicare services uncertain of whether or not they will receive care each year. That’s an irresponsible way to govern and it’s unfairly burdening our Second District seniors and medical practitioners.

“It’s imperative for Congress to protect and preserve Medicare and make it more accessible for our seniors. The Medicare Access and Chip Reauthorization Act provides the first-step in preserving and protecting Medicare for our seniors. This bill will repeal the flawed Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula and provide better access to health care for our seniors while helping our taxpayers save money.

“While this bill is not perfect, it’s an important pathway to allow seniors to continue to see their trusted doctors by making Medicare more accessible and strengthen Medicare for future generations.”