On January 1, Congress passed HR 8, the American Taxpayer Relief Act, narrowly averting the so-called "fiscal cliff." The bill included a one-year Medicare fee-for-service physician payment freeze.

California's Medicare contractor, PalmettoGBA, has now posted the new fee schedule on its website and has begun processing 2013 claims. Although the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services gave contractors instructions to hold claims for up to 10 days to allow time to implement the new fee schedule, there shouldn't be any noticeable impact for California physicians.

Physicians should be aware that the 2013 fee schedule may not be exactly the same as the 2012 fee schedule. Although Congress stopped the 26.5 percent SGR cut, there were other components of the fee schedule formula that affect payment that may have changed, such as the relative value units (RVUs).

View the fee schedule

Contact: Michele Kelly, (213) 226-0338 or mkelly@cmadocs.org.