Physicians pushing back after CMS suspends program to ease docs’ cash flow concerns
Physician groups are pushing back after the federal government decided to shelve a loan program aimed at easing docs’ cash flow concerns during the pandemic.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services had approved more than 24,000 such loans totaling some $40 billion to providers under the Advance Payment Program since March 28. However, officials announced April 26 that they were suspending the offering with no advanced notice. The American Medical Association, Academy of Family Physicians, Medical Group Association and College of Physicians have all voiced their opposition to the move and are fighting for its reinstatement.
In a statement provided to Radiology Business Tuesday, the American College of Radiology said it also favored reinstating the Advanced Payment Program.
"This move can only help radiology practices impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic who have pursued—or would like to pursue—funding through this source," said Cynthia Moran, ACR's executive VP of government relations, economics and health policy. In the meantime, the college encourages physicians to apply for emergency funding through the Health and Human Services Provider Relief Fund, she added.
CMS did not give a reason for the suspension, nor did it respond to a request for comment from Bloomberg Law, according to a published report. The agency is also “reevaluating the amounts” for the similar Medicare Accelerated Payment Program, which has already dished out $60 billion in provider relief during the pandemic.
In the absence of these two offerings, the feds have steered doctors toward the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, as ACR noted. But many practices do not qualify for those dollars or cannot afford to wait for them to arrive.
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Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.