Speak Up Today: Modernize Medicare Payment Policy

Congress is preparing to take action on a budget reconciliation package the week of May 5, and now is a critical time for the audiology community to raise its voice. For decades, Medicare payment policy has relied on outdated mechanisms that no longer reflect the realities of delivering care in 2025. Among these issues are:

• The lack of a permanent inflationary update to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS)
• The failure to revise the budget neutrality threshold, which was set at $20 million in 1989 and has never been updated.

Why This Matters

Each year, providers face Medicare payment cuts—not because of overutilization or fraud, but due to outdated rules that automatically penalize any increase in spending, regardless of need or accuracy. These cuts reduce access to care for Medicare beneficiaries and undermine the long-term sustainability of health-care practices, including audiology clinics serving older adults. We are urging Congress to include two common-sense reforms in the reconciliation package:

• A permanent inflationary update to the MPFS based on the Medicare Economic Index (MEI)—ensuring reimbursement better reflects the rising cost of care.
• An updated budget neutrality threshold that brings this antiquated rule in line with modern spending levels and allows Medicare policy to evolve fairly and reasonably.

How You Can Help

We’ve launched a messagingcampaign to make it easy for you to contact your member of Congress and ask them to support these essential reforms. With just a few clicks, you can send a powerful message in support of stability, fairness, and access to care.

This is an opportunity for the audiology community to enact meaningful, bipartisan change that improves Medicare for both patients and providers. With your voice, we can make it happen. Don’t wait. Take action today and help us build a stronger, more sustainable Medicare system for the future.