U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill and House & Senate Reintroduce Bipartisan Access to Care Legislation

This week the U.S. House of Representatives passed a reconciliation bill that includes some health care provisions, including a potential MEI update for physicians for 2026. The American Medical Association has issued a statement on the bill, saying “The AMA appreciates that the bill adopted today addresses the problem of decreasing Medicare payment for physician services. Continued cuts threaten access to care for America’s seniors, and the inclusion of an update for 2026 that partially accounts for inflation is an important step. This must, however, represent only the first step to ensuring that Medicare payments keep up with inflation over the long term, as they do for other Medicare providers.” Read more here. Additionally, the House and Senate reintroduced the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, a bipartisan, bicameral legislation that would streamline outdated Medicare Advantage prior authorization process in Medicare Advantage. Read the press release here.