Jeff Bingaman: “I rise today with Senator Snowe to introduce legislation entitled the ``Medicare Hospital Outpatient Department Fair…”

“I rise today with Senator Snowe to introduce legislation entitled the ``Medicare Hospital Outpatient Department Fair Payment Act of 2002'' to improve Medicare payments for hospital outpatient department services. According to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, or MedPAC, in its report to Congress this past March. ``We estimate that the aggregate Medicare margin for outpatient services will be -16.3 percent in 2002. Unfortunately, while the Medicare outpatient prospective payment system, or OPPS, was created to give providers incentives to deliver quality outpatient care and services in an efficient manner, OPPS reimbursement rates have been set at a level substantially below what is costs hospitals to care for Medicare patients. That is an unsustainable burden for our Nation's hospitals. This problem is especially acute in rural areas. According to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's June 2001 report entitled ``Report to Congress: Medicare in Rural America,'' outpatient costs represent 21.8 percent of total Medicare costs in rural hospitals compared to 16.1 percent in urban hospitals.”