American College of Rheumatology Reacts to Proposed 2025 Physician Payment Rule

ATLANTA —The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) shared the following initial reaction to the proposed CY 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and Quality Payment Program rule.

"Physicians are currently grappling with rising overhead costs, workforce shortages, and increasing administrative burdens. Meanwhile, Medicare physician payments have declined by 29% from 2001 to 2024, a trend not seen in other healthcare sectors where payments are adjusted annually for inflation," said Deborah Dyett Desir, MD, president of the American College of Rheumatology. "While we appreciate the continued add-on payment for evaluation and management (E/M) visits, we are disappointed by the inadequate 2.80% change to the base rate. The ACR had hoped that CMS would propose Medicare reimbursement levels that more accurately reflect the cost of providing care."

ACR will continue to review the proposed rule and looks forward to working with CMS to improve the final rule for physicians and, consequentially, patient’s ability to access care.

Media Contact
Monica McDonald
mmcdonald@rheumatology.org

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The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) is an international medical society representing over 9,100 rheumatologists and rheumatology health professionals with a mission to empower rheumatology professionals to excel in their specialty. In doing so, the ACR offers education, research, advocacy, and practice management support to help its members continue their innovative work and provide quality patient care. Rheumatologists are experts in the diagnosis, management, and treatment of more than 100 different types of arthritis and rheumatic diseases.