The Trump administration is not suggesting the payment changes would save Medicare money. A plan put forward by The Centers for Medicare and Human Services ( CMS ) has made major moves to tackle reduce paperwork and improve patient care , but it has drawn the ire of a range of doctors and advocates for patients . The proposal would affect roughly 40 percent of payment physicians receive from patients by combining different levels of payments into a single form with a single fee for each physician ’s appointment . By doing so , it is hoped that it would encourage physicians to pay more attention to patients and delivering care , and less on administrative tasks . While doctors agree that the few minutes saved each appointment would be valuable over the long term , they do not believe it would be worth the reduced payment he would receive . This would be due to the loss of distinction between doctors in who provides the care whether they are primary care physicians or specialists . For instance , rheumatologists would expect a 3 percent reduction in Medicare ’s reimbursement given the more complicated procedures they perform . One doctor revealed that he would expect a ten percent drop in personal income from his patients , as 70 percent of his costs are on aspects , such as rent , that are rising . The risk is two - fold that it might discourage students from certain specialties , while also raising the change that certain doctors may turn away Medicare patients , or at the very least cherry pick who to treat . It is this second aspect that most advocates are concerned about , and the fear is that the " add - on " payment of $ 67 per appointment for the more complicated patients , would not be enough to encourage doctors to see those with the most complex illnesses . Indeed , there is also a fear that a flat fee will encourage more patient visits which will in turn lead to more copays for patients and higher costs for Medicare . CMS hopes to implement the changes by Jan 1 , 2019 , but some Medicare advocates are urging CMS to postpone these changes and consider a trial run instead .
A plan put forward by The Centers for Medicare and Human Services ( CMS ) has made major moves to tackle reduce paperwork and improve patient care , but it has drawn the ire of a range of doctors and advocates for patients . The proposal would affect roughly 40 percent of payment physicians receive from patients by combining different levels of payments into a single form with a single fee for each physician ’s appointment . By doing so , it is hoped that it would encourage physicians to pay more attention to patients and delivering care , and less on administrative tasks . While doctors agree that the few minutes saved each appointment would be valuable over the long term , they do not believe it would be worth the reduced payment he would receive . This would be due to the loss of distinction between doctors in who provides the care whether they are primary care physicians or specialists . For instance , rheumatologists would expect a 3 percent reduction in Medicare ’s reimbursement given the more complicated procedures they perform . One doctor revealed that he would expect a ten percent drop in personal income from his patients , as 70 percent of his costs are on aspects , such as rent , that are rising . The risk is two - fold that it might discourage students from certain specialties , while also raising the change that certain doctors may turn away Medicare patients , or at the very least cherry pick who to treat . It is this second aspect that most advocates are concerned about , and the fear is that the " add - on " payment of $ 67 per appointment for the more complicated patients , would not be enough to encourage doctors to see those with the most complex illnesses . Indeed , there is also a fear that a flat fee will encourage more patient visits which will in turn lead to more copays for patients and higher costs for Medicare . CMS hopes to implement the changes by Jan 1 , 2019 , but some Medicare advocates are urging CMS to postpone these changes and consider a trial run instead .