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Upton: Obama stalled on permanent 'doc fix'
The Republican leader of a powerful House committee slammed President Obama on Wednesday because the healthcare law did not include a permanent "doc fix."
Obama "deliberately failed to address what has been the greatest threat in the medical profession since the last decade," said Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), referring to Medicare's sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula.
"It remains puzzling how a law that supposedly embraces sweeping reform of healthcare failed to address this provision," he said.
Upton and his Ways and Means counterpart, Rep. Dave Camp (R-Mich.), recently unveiled a framework for SGR repeal and have promised to fast-track the effort.
The bill will come to the floor in July or early August, Upton told the American Medical Association on Wednesday.
During the healthcare debate of 2009 and 2010, the House Democrats' proposal initially included a permanent "doc fix." But Republicans forced them to withdraw the proposal because its costs weren't offset.
Some Democrats argue the "doc fix" does not need to be offset because it's not a traditional expense — Congress isn't actually spending more money each year on Medicare payments, it's simply keeping payments at the same level instead of implementing cuts called for in the law.
But that approach hasn't gotten much traction, and an Energy and Commerce aide who recently previewed Upton's latest push said permanent repeal would have to be paid for.
— Sam Baker contributed.
This post was updated at 10:12 a.m.
