Alliance Opposes Legislation to Roll Back Site Neutral Reforms

H.R. 2552 threatens to raise healthcare costs for patients and taxpayers, fuel consolidation, and
decrease transparency.

Washington, DC, May 24, 2019 --(PR.com)-- The Alliance for Site Neutral Payment Reform (Alliance)
today expressed opposition to a new bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives aiming to roll
back commonsense reforms that are saving money for patients and taxpayers and helping to address
consolidation in the healthcare marketplace.

Introduced by Representatives Derek Kilmer (WA-06) and Elise Stefanik (NY-21), the Protecting Local
Access to Care for Everyone (PLACE) Act (H.R. 2552) threatens to undo the site neutral payment policy
recently put in place by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Site neutral payments generate significant healthcare savings that directly and positively impact
beneficiaries, the Medicare program, employers and American taxpayers, in addition to enhancing
transparency for patients. Patients spent $411 million more in out-of-pocket costs over a three-year period
when certain services were delivered in a hospital-owned setting, according to an analysis by Avalere.
According to CMS, site neutral payments for Evaluation and Management (E/M) services are expected to
save the Medicare program an estimated $300 million and lower patient co-payments by $80 million in
2019.

“As a member of the Alliance, the American College of Physicians strongly supports equalizing
payments across practice settings. At a time when leaders across the country agree out-of-control health
care costs need to come down, it is unwise to re-establish loopholes that allow hospitals to charge patients
higher rates for performing the same services as community clinics or independent physician offices,”
said Bob Doherty, Senior Vice President of Governmental Affairs and Public Policy of the American
College of Physicians.

In order to take advantage of higher prices charged in the hospital outpatient department (HOPD) setting,
hospitals are increasingly acquiring community practices, with more than 13,000 physician offices being
converted into HOPDs between July 2014 and January 2015 alone. While the Bipartisan Budget Act of
2015 (BBA) aligned reimbursement rates for HOPDs that acquire new physician practices, existing
off-campus HOPDs are still exempt, which is why The Alliance strongly supported CMS' expansion of
site neutral payments to all outpatient clinic visits as part of the CY 2019 Outpatient Prospective Payment
System (OPPS) final rule.

About the Alliance for Site Neutral Payment Reform

The Alliance for Site Neutral Payment Reform is a coalition of patient advocates, providers, payers and
employers who support payment parity across site of service in order to decrease Medicare and
commercial spending, ensure patients receive the right care in the right setting, lower taxpayer and
beneficiary costs and increase patient access. Our growing membership represents healthcare providers,
patient and consumer groups, insurers and others who believe patients - and the healthcare system -

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would be better served by policies that are fiscally wise and preserve and enhance care options.

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Contact Information:
Alliance For Site Neutral Payment Reform
Ellen Almond
703-548-0019
Contact via Email
http://www.siteneutral.org/

Online Version of Press Release:

You can read the online version of this press release at: https://www.pr.com/press-release/785810

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