Home Health & Hospice Week

Will 2% sequestration cut hit March 31?

President Biden’s 1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package contained a lot, but it did not include an extension of the moratorium on 2 percent sequestration cuts for Medicare.

Home care, hospice, and other Medicare providers have been lobbying for Congress to extend the suspension, and the House complied by passing H.R. 1868 March 19. In addition to postponing sequester payment cuts from March 31 to the end of the year, it also staves off pay-as-you-go cuts for the American Rescue Act.

Now multiple news outlets report that Senate leaders have agreed to pass the legislation with limited to no debate before recessing March 26. At press time, an official vote on the bill hadn’t yet been scheduled.