Peoria Standard

Reps. Darin LaHood (R-IL), Adrian Smith (R-NE), Terri Sewell (D-AL), and Melanie Stansbury (D-NM) have reintroduced the Keep Physicians Serving Patients Act, a piece of legislation aimed at ensuring seniors in rural America have access to healthcare providers. The act seeks to adjust the geographic practice cost index (GPCI) to more accurately reflect the costs of practicing medicine in rural areas.

Rep. LaHood emphasized the importance of this bill in ensuring that Medicare providers in rural communities are not unfairly impacted by lower payments based on an outdated GPCI. He stated, "I am proud to join this bipartisan group to introduce this commonsense bill, which will modernize the GPCI formula, accounting for the unique practice needs of rural providers, and ensure physicians can continue serving patients in need regardless of where they live."

Rep. Smith echoed Rep. LaHood's sentiment, emphasizing that losing healthcare providers to an outdated reimbursement index would be detrimental to rural communities. He said, "Modernizing the GPCI is a commonsense step we can take to ensure Medicare patients in rural America have access to care while also setting a reasonable, responsible reimbursement minimum for rural providers."

Rep. Sewell highlighted the strain that rural healthcare providers in Alabama have been facing due to Medicare reimbursement rates that do not fully reflect the cost of providing services in smaller communities. She expressed her support for the bill, stating, "By modernizing the GPCI, this legislation would help ensure that providers are fairly reimbursed so that our healthcare professionals can focus on treating patients and saving lives."

Rep. Stansbury drew attention to the healthcare crisis in rural communities, particularly in New Mexico, and the need to address the outdated system that does not accurately calculate reimbursement costs. She stated, "The Keep Physicians Serving Patients Act corrects for this by adjusting the geographic practice cost index (GPCI), assuring that the costs of practicing medicine in rural areas are accurately portrayed and reimbursed to rural providers."

The current GPCI estimates used by Medicare often underestimate the costs associated with practicing medicine in rural communities, resulting in lower payments for rural providers compared to those in urban areas. The Keep Physicians Serving Patients Act aims to set a permanent minimum GPCI to ensure that all providers are adequately and fairly compensated for their services.

With the reintroduction of the Keep Physicians Serving Patients Act, there is hope that rural communities will have improved access to healthcare providers and that healthcare professionals will receive fair compensation for their services. This bipartisan effort seeks to address the disparities in reimbursement rates and ensure that seniors in rural America receive the care they need.

Click this link to access more information: https://lahood.house.gov/2023/11/lahood-bipartisan-colleagues-reintroduce-keep-physicians-serving-patients-act