2% Sequestration Moratorium Set to Expire

In August, the Senate passed a roughly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill funded in part by delaying a controversial drug rebate rule and restarting Medicare payment cuts.  The infrastructure bill, which passed the chamber by a 69 to 30 vote, now heads to the House which is expected to approve it.

The package would reinstall starting in 2022 a 2% “sequestration” payment cut on all Medicare payments. In 2020, during the COVID public health emergency, Congress halted the 2% “sequestration” cuts to Medicare payments.  The moratorium on the cut has been extended several times since then, but now expires at the end of 2021. 

Multiple provider groups including the American Hospital Association and College of American Pathologists have urged Congress not to resume the cuts to help pay for the infrastructure.