2014 Proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
AAFP Response to the CMS 2014 Proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/medicare/LT-CMS-2104ProposedMPFS-082913.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder - Scope of Practice: Pharmacists
...pharmacists and physicians, such as collaborative drug therapy management (CDTM). However, the AAFP believes that only licensed doctors of medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, and podiatry should have the statutory authority to prescribe drugs. The AAFP believes that independent...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/scope/BKG-Scope-Pharmacists.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder - Scope of Practice: Physician Assistants
...determination of scope of practice, adaptability of supervision requirements, determination of co-signature requirements, and maximum number of PAs a physician can supervise at one time. All states have passed legislation regarding the use of the term licensure to describe the...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/scope/BKG-Scope-PhysicianAssistants.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Education and Training - Family Physicians vs Nurse Practitioners
...and the clerkships grants students the Medical Doctor (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree, which entitles them to start full clinical training in a residency program. Most family medicine residency programs, which are accredited by the Accreditation Council for...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/scope/FPvsNP.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Graduate Medical Education
...AAFP Position To increase the number of family medicine graduates in the United States, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) is committed to removing significant barriers stifling the growth in family medicine specialty choice among U.S. medical graduates. AAFP policy...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/gme/BKG-GME.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Marijuana
...that satisfy the needs of their patients. Despite the limited body of research supporting the medical properties of marijuana, a growing number of patients have turned to medical marijuana to treat symptoms associated with conditions like chronic pain or chemotherapy. The AAFP...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/prevention/misc/BKG-Marijuana.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Medicaid Work Requirements
...Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Analyses of these programs suggest that work requirements do not spur a significant number of beneficiaries to seek and gain employment7 and that the evidence to support the idea that work has a positive impact on health and health...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/coverage/medicaid/BKG-MedicaidWorkRequirements.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Physician Preceptor Tax Credits
...and coordinated care through robust family medicine preceptorship programs. Evidence shows that early and consistent mentorship of medical students by preceptors increases the likelihood of these students choosing family medicine as a career. The AAFP will continue to advocate for...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/gme/BKG-PreceptorTaxCredit.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Primary Care Spend
...and efforts to increase the level of investment. Transparency in Primary Care Spending Despite an increase in the number of medical students choosing family medicine and other primary care specialties for residency, resources and investment within the United States remain skewed...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/apms/BKG-PrimaryCareSpend.pdf
AAFP Backgrounder: Teaching Health Centers
...Background The THCGME program, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), provides funding to increase the number of primary care medical and dental residents training in community-based settings across the country. Since most health care in the U.S....
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/gme/BKG-TeachingHealthCenters.pdf
AAFP Comment Letter on 2019 Final Medicare Physician Fee Schedule - December 28, 2018
...actuarially based upon the framework of FFS payment. Thus, if current FFS payments are not improved, the current undervaluation of family medicine and primary care payment will result in a similar undervaluation of primary care in evolving primary care APMs. In the long run,...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/coverage/medicare/LT-CMS-2019FinalMPFS-122818.pdf
AAFP Comments on 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule - September 28, 2020
...family medicine and primary care. We look forward to working with CMS on designing and implementing policies that support these shared goals through both the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and the Quality Payment Program (QPP). Our members are on the frontlines of medicine,...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/medicare/feesched/LT-CMS-Response2021MPFSProposedRule-092820.pdf
AAFP Comments on IRS Proposed Rule on Direct Primary Care Arrangements - August 10, 2020
...access to primary care for all Americans. DPC and other direct care models are increasing in popularity among our members and a growing number of family physicians are expressing an interest in the DPC model. However, there are identified barriers that may prevent some patients from...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/dpc/LT-IRS-ProposedDPCRule-081020.pdf
AAFP Comments to CMS on MSSP/ACO Proposed Rule - October 15, 2018
...is related to at least two factors-being physician-led and having a strong primary care foundation. A September 2018 New England Journal of Medicine article found that physician-led ACOs generated savings that increased over a three-year study period compared to hospital-led ACOs.2...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/apms/LT-CMS-ACO-MSSP-101518.pdf
AAFP Comments to CMS on the 2018 Inpatient Proposed Rule
...that meets their needs. It should be noted that this will occur at a point when upgrading to 2015 Edition CEHRT could minimize the number of significant disruptions to patient care. As some members have begun the process of switching EHR systems, reports of information blocking...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/legal/administrative/LT-CMS-IPPSProposedRule-060817.pdf
AAFP Comments to DEA on MAT Interim Final Rule - December 23, 2020
AAFP comments on the DEA Medication-Assisted treatment interim final rule.
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/prevention/risk/LT-DEA-MATFinalRule-122320.pdf
AAFP Comments to DHS on Proposal to Eliminate the H-1B Visa Lottery - December 1, 2020
...Department proposes to grant petitions based on wage level, awarding them first to those with the highest wages. Due to existing caps on the number of H-1B physicians that are accepted, this means that petitioners with lower wage levels will never be selected and it is unlikely that...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/gme/LT-DHS-H1BLotteryProposedRule-120120.pdf
AAFP Comments to HHS on Proposed Rule to Automate Prior Authorizations - December 23, 2020
The AAFP is in favor of requirements for payers to automate and respond to prior authorization requests in a timely manner, so we are concerned that this proposal will not have a meaningful impact on reducing administrative burden, since it does not include Medicare Advantage plans or ...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/legal/administrative/LT-HHS-PriorAuthProposedRule-122320.pdf
AAFP Comments to HHS on SUNSET Proposal - December 2, 2020
...the regulation. More specifically, the Department proposes to require that all regulations are assessed for their impact on a substantial number of small entities. For those that are deemed to have a significant impact, HHS will have to more formally review them to determine whether...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/legal/administrative/LT-HHS-CommentsSUNSETProposal-120220.pdf
AAFP Executive Summary of Alternative Payment Models - March 14, 2017
...view of the patient, who is much more than a set of organ systems and disease conditions. The goal of primary care is to ensure that medicine does not lose sight of the whole patient and the patient’s context, which affects a wide range of health outcomes. There is an emerging...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/apms/ES-AdvancedPrimaryCare-121316.pdf
AAFP Executive Summary: 2020 Year End Funding Bill and COVID-19 Emergency Funding Key ...
On Dec. 22, President Trump signed legislation into law which funds the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year 2021 and provides about $900 billion in COVID-19 emergency funding. The bipartisan agreement is the fourth legislative package passed in response to the COVID-19 ...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/prevention/crisis/ES-2020YearEndBillHighlights-122220.pdf
AAFP Fact Sheet on the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education Program
...Increases the number of physicians who serve underserved populations 2 3 Reauthorize the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) Program THCGME residents train in the primary care specialties of family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics,...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/workforce/gme/FS-THCGME.pdf
AAFP Initial Summary of the 2020 Final Medicare Physician Fee Schedule - November 1, 2019
...be $36.0896. Based on CMS’ final rule, there would be no change in total Medicare allowed charges for family medicine in 2020, but total allowed charges for family medicine would increase 12% in 2021. Evaluation and Management In 2019 rulemaking, CMS finalized changes to simplify...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/payment/medicare/feesched/ES-2020FinalMPFS-110219.pdf
AAFP Letter for EandC Subcommittee on Health on ACA and Drug Pricing Bills Markup - ...
...debate, in part, because of the complexity of care family physicians provide and the fact that the number and intricacy of conditions, complaints, and diseases seen in family medicine is far greater than those seen by any other physician specialty. Ensuring access to...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/coverage/aca/LT-E&C-ACADrugPricing-03272019.pdf
AAFP Letter for the Senate Finance Committee RFI on Maternal Health - April 3, 2020
...Understanding family medicine’s potential role to improve pregnancy related health outcomes, the AAFP established a maternal health taskforce in 2018. The Academy’s programmatic and legislative priorities include retaining obstetric care professionals, supporting maternity care...
Advocacy
https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/prevention/women/LT-SenateFinance-MaternalHealth-040320.pdf