House committee advances Medicare physician payment reform bill

The House Ways and Means Committee has advanced H.R. 8163, the Provider Reimbursement Stability Act of 2026, during a May 21 markup. The bill now moves forward for further consideration in the U.S. House.

H.R. 8163 is intended to stabilize Medicare physician payments under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. The bill was introduced March 30 by Rep. Greg Murphy, MD, R-N.C., with bipartisan co-sponsors, according to GovInfo records.

Under the legislation, annual Medicare conversion-factor adjustments would be limited to ±2.5% beginning in 2027. The measure would also raise the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule budget-neutrality threshold from $20M to $54.3M and index the threshold to the Medicare Economic Index.

The American College of Radiology has supported the bill, saying it would reduce sharp payment swings and contribute to longer-term Medicare payment reform. ACR said the legislation would also allow corrections when the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services uses incorrect utilization data.

Current Medicare budget-neutrality rules can require payment reductions in 1 area of the fee schedule when spending increases elsewhere. Physician groups have argued that this creates year-to-year volatility and does not adequately reflect practice cost inflation.

Radiology societies, including ACR, the Society of Interventional Radiology, and the American Society of Neuroradiology, have urged Congress to advance the measure. ACR characterized the bill as a step toward a more predictable Medicare physician payment system.

The bill also includes provisions requiring more frequent updates to direct practice expense inputs and claims-based corrections for utilization estimates tied to newly unbundled or revalued codes.

Medicare physician payments have declined by more than 30% since 2001 after inflation adjustment, according to physician-advocacy groups cited in policy summaries supporting H.R. 8163.

“ACR asserts the bill would reduce sharp payment swings and support long-term Medicare payment reform,” the college said in its April support statement.