CMS Proposes 30% Physician Pay Cut for 2012

In other issues addressed by the proposed rule, CMS seeks to add smoking cessation to the list of services that can be provided through telehealth. In the future, new services would be examined according to the clinical benefit they provide rather than on whether they are equivalent to a corresponding in-person service.

Finally, the CMS proposed some changes to the Physician Quality Reporting System, the ePrescribing Incentive Program, and the Electronic Health Records Incentive Program. The agency, for instance, is expanding the ways physicians can qualify for incentive payments under the meaningful use criteria.

Comments to the proposed rule can be submitted until Aug. 30 at www.regulations.gov