WASHINGTON, D.C. – House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX), Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-MI), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), and Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) today applauded the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) announcement regarding the final rule for the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). Last month, the bipartisan Committee leaders wrote to the Administration urging additional flexibility for practitioners – something reflected in the final rule.
“We’re pleased to see the Administration responded to many of our concerns and followed our recommendation to provide clinicians and practitioners more flexibility in the issuance of the final rule for MACRA. These steps help enhance practitioner participation in new Medicare payment opportunities that will ultimately improve patient care and outcomes. Last month, the Administration provided early word of reporting flexibility for physicians and other health care providers. We believe that these and other flexibilities, which are included in the final rule, will help ensure that Medicare beneficiaries receive the value-based care they deserve. This historic law has been a collaborative effort from the start. We are encouraged by this final rule and CMS’s commitment to ongoing collaboration with Congress and the health care community.”