Axelrod: 'Doc fix' will be 'part of budget'

White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod on Sunday suggested Democrats' proposed reforms to Medicare payment rates would not have the budget impact some Republicans say it could.

The majority party fielded considerable criticism last week for its so-called "doc fix" reform package -- a bill that would permanently address fluctuations in Medicare reimbursement payments to physicians and hospitals -- because it costs nearly $250 billion and lacks in-kind revenue offsets. But Axelrod on Sunday said "it will be part of the [president's] budget," and he insisted it was essential Congress pass it this year.

"Every year, draconian cuts are proposed for doctors that would have a deleterious effect on patients," the senior adviser told ABC's This Week. "And every year, the Congress acts on it and defers on that. And the fact is, it's a charade."

"Everyone in the Congress knows they're not going to let that go forward. All that we're saying here is, let's be honest about it. The president provided for it in his budgets, and we ought to acknowledge that this is a -- this is an ongoing expense that we'll have to meet," he added.

Republicans, however, see the bill much differently. They are frustrated by the possibility Sen. Debbie Stabenow's (D-Mich.) proposal will add to the deficit, but they are nearly apoplectic at the thought Democrats may have kept the "doc fix" out of their bigger healthcare reform bills to offer the impression those bills are deficit neutral.

"President Obama promised deficit-neutral healthcare reform. And the 'doc fix' is part of healthcare reform -- so why's it being done separately?" Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) charged on Friday.