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SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2014

Floor Speech

By: Dave Camp
By: Dave Camp
Date: March 14, 2014
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Senior Citizens Entitlements and the Safety Net Health Insurance

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Mr. CAMP. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today, Mr. Speaker, to strongly support H.R. 4015, the SGR Repeal and Provider Payment Modernization Act, as amended.

The Ways and Means Committee and Energy and Commerce Committee and Senate Finance Committee have worked in a bipartisan manner to develop a permanent physician payment fix repeal.

Years of hearings, discussion drafts, and ongoing dialogues with stakeholders have resulted in H.R. 4015, a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on SGR replacement policy.

This bill has over 100 cosponsors, has the support of 18 Members of the House Doctors Caucus, and 600 national and State organizations representing physicians and other professionals.

There is a reason for all of this support. H.R. 4015 has a lot to like. It repeals the outdated SGR formula and gives seniors the certainty that they will have access to their doctors.

It incentivizes better care and better results for seniors that rely on the Medicare program, and it breaks the cycle of uncertainty for doctors and their patients, providing permanent relief and improving how Medicare pays doctors.

We must not let this opportunity pass by. Time is short. If we do not act, in just 2 weeks, doctors will see a 24 percent cut in their Medicare reimbursement, jeopardizing seniors' access to care.

We must safeguard taxpayer dollars. That is why we pay for permanent repeal by delaying the health care law's individual mandate for 5 years. Americans across the country are facing higher costs, losing the coverage they have and like, and are seeing smaller paychecks as a result of ObamaCare.

Last week, the administration announced that it would continue to expand certain exemptions from the individual mandate for 2 years. This proposal would extend that further--would extend further what the administration is already doing and give all Americans relief from the mandates and penalties of ObamaCare. It is only fair.

I urge all members to support H.R. 4105. I reserve the balance of my time.

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