As the legislative session comes to a close, the ACR is calling on Members of Congress to include bill language that addresses three outstanding rheumatology policy priorities in any year-end legislative package: 

1. Medicare payment cuts are set to go into effect on January 1. The Supporting Medicare Providers Act of 2022 would delay the 4.5 percent cut to the conversion factor for one year and signal Congress’s commitment to longer-term reforms to the Medicare reimbursement system.
2. The Improving Seniors Timely Access to Care Act has already passed in the House and would streamline and modernize the prior authorization process in increasingly popular Medicare Advantage plans.
3. As exemptions implemented during the COVID-19 public health emergency begin to taper, the ACR urges lawmakers to support solutions that ensure all patients, regardless of health status or location, maintain access to the care they need.