Of those surveyed, 73% reported that they always got an appointment as soon as they needed it, and 20% said they usually did.
“So that leaves 7% who reported that they sometimes or never were able to get timely appointments,” Ms. Boccuti noted at the meeting.
Ms. Boccuti said she expected to complete an access to care analysis for MedPAC's review in December. At that time, there should be more information on physician willingness to serve beneficiaries.
Medicare Payment Increases in 2005
According to the final Medicare physician fee schedule released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, physicians would have seen a 3.3% cut in Medicare payments in 2005 if the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA) hadn't blocked that decrease. Instead, payments will increase by 1.5%.
In other MMA mandates, Medicare now will pay for a “Welcome to Medicare” physical and for cardiovascular and diabetes screening tests.
In addition to payment for the physical, physicians can bill and be paid separately for a screening electrocardiogram, and may also bill for a more extensive office visit at the same time as the physical, as long as the services are medically necessary.
The fee schedule also increases payments for vaccinations and other types of injections. For instance, payments for administering the flu vaccine will increase from $8 to $18.
These changes boost aggregate spending under the fee schedule from $53.1 billion in 2004 to $55.3 billion in 2005.