On April 21, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) released a brief on the relationship between health care reform and Medicare's sustainable growth rate (SGR).  The brief explains that the cost of fixing the SGR should not be contained in cost projections of health care reform because it is a separate issue that will have to be solved regardless of what happens with health care reform.  The brief also outlines instances where Congress has enacted legislation to cut costs in Medicare.

From the report: Some critics of the new health reform law contend that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) cost estimate understates the law’s true cost because the law doesn’t fix Medicare’s flawed sustainable growth rate (SGR) payment formula for physicians. Since Congress is certain to enact a fix, these critics contend, its cost should be part of the health reform law. That claim, however, is mistaken. The cost of fixing the SGR formula is entirely unrelated to health reform and would exist with or without the new law.

Full report:  The Sustainable Growth Rate Formula and Health Reform (PDF | 117.36 KB)

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.  (2010).  The sustainable growth rate formula and health reform.