APTA Advocacy Network Newsletter — March 2024 Edition 

Advocacy Marches On 

Spring is in the air. Clocks have sprung forward an hour, March Madness brackets are on the mind, and in Washington, D.C., the cherry blossom peak bloom speculation has begun. 

On Capitol Hill, it has been an intense start to spring as policymakers on both sides of the aisle worked to formulate and pass a bipartisan agreement to keep the government funded and address the Medicare payment cut that went into effect Jan. 1, impacting dozens of providers, including physical therapists. In February, we saw 32 senators come together in a bipartisan effort via a letter to congressional leadership urging more funding for the 2024 fee schedule and saying that such a fix must be included in any spending deal. APTA also advocates made their voices heard in record numbers, demanding that Congress include a fix to the Medicare fee schedule in the spending package deal, and they were successful. 

On March 7, Congress passed a funding package that prevents a government shutdown and provides over $730 million in additional funding (a 1.68% increase to the fee schedule’s conversion factor that impacts payments to all providers) for the 2024 Medicare fee schedule to mitigate cuts. The additional funding provided by Congress will reduce, but not totally eliminate, the entire 3.37% facing a wide range of providers.

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