Legislation to avert a 10.1 percent cut in Medicare payments to physicians was signed by President Bush on December 29th.  The bill provides physicians with a temporary 0.5 percent increase in payments for six months ensuring that Congress will take-up the issue again in 2008.  If Congress does not act on the issue by June, physicians will see the 10.1 percent cut go into effect.  The American Medical Association said they were "disappointed" with the temporary patch and will urge Congress to pursue a long-term solution to the problem when members return from recess.

In addition to the Medicare payment fix, the legislation provides funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) until March 2009.  During the last several months of 2007, the House and Senate tried to work with each other and the White House to come to a compromise on the reauthorization of SCHIP and the Medicare package.  An additional $1.6 billion was included in the bill to prevent projected shortfalls that numerous states had anticipated in 2008.

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) has released a proposal to establish "Guaranteed Access Plans", to provide coverage for uninsured individuals with the highest expected medical costs, in the individual market. The proposal intends to expand access to health insurance for all who seek coverage, including those with pre-existing medical conditions.

With little time remaining before Congress adjourns for the year, Senate leaders reached agreement on a Medicare package to fix a 10.1 percent reimbursement cut to physicians that would take effect January 1, 2008.  

In December 2007, the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families released a report on the impacts that the Administration's August decision to impose new federal limits on the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) will have on states and low-income children.  The new rules require that if a state seeks to expand SCHIP, they must first cover 95 percent of children in families earning less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level.  Twenty-three states will be directly impacted by the new directive when it takes effect in August 2008.  The report found that several states including Louisiana, Oklahoma, Indiana and New York have already cut back on their plans in anticipation of the new rule.  Report author Cindy Mann said, "[The Administration] is moving ahead without congressional authorization and using a back-door way to shut down SCHIP coverage for uninsured children in modest-income families."

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