Home Health & Hospice Week

You may not need to worry about the Medicare Payments Advisory Board any longer, because Congress is considering repealing the group altogether. 

As part of the Affordable Care Act, President Obama created the Independent Payment Advisory Board, a 15-member government agency that had the power to change Medicare policy. Also referred to as a “Super PAC,” the IPAB was considered a stronger version of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, which makes recommendations but cannot enact policies.

However, providers were quick to decry the IPAB, saying that cuts would be taking place at random and would affect not only providers, but also access to patient care. Last week, Rep. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) introduced a bill that would repeal the IPAB. Roe had previously introduced the same bill in Congress last year. Medical groups cheered at the possibility of the IPAB’s dismantling.