MA Law Would Require Physicians to Participate in Government Health Programs
BY LAUREN UZDIENSKI, MAY 19, 2010
A new bill proposed by the Massachusetts state legislature would force physicians to participate in Medicare, Medicaid and state health programs as a condition of licensure. According to the Massachusetts State Legislature's website, the bill, MA 2170, is now in committee.
If Massachusetts adopts this law, it could throw a wrench in physicians' threats to opt out of Medicare if payments sink. In a poll conducted by Sermo, 70% of physicians said they would leave Massachusetts or retire early if the bill goes into effect.
The law would set physician pay at 110% of the Medicare reimbursement rate, and physicians reported to Sermo that these reimbursement rates would "simply not allow them to earn enough income to stay in practice" and could lead to an "erosion of quality of care." Finally, mandating government health program participation may not stop with Massachusetts: Sermo's CEO and founder notes that in terms of legislating healthcare, as Massachusetts goes, so goes the rest of the country, pointing to the universal health coverage that's been in place in the state since 2006.
