Whitehouse & Cassidy Reintroduce Bipartisan Bill to Invest $10 Billion in Primary Care and Modernize Medicare Payments

Pay PCPs Act gives providers greater flexibility to deliver high-quality, patient-centered care

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) reintroduced their legislation to better support and improve pay for high-quality primary care providers (PCPs). The Pay PCPs Act would move primary care away from a system that pays providers based largely on the number of visits and services they deliver, and toward a more flexible payment model that rewards high-quality, patient-centered care.

"Primary care providers know their patients and what they need to stay healthy. The Pay PCPs Act would allow providers to finally step off the fee-for-service treadmill and get paid fairly for their work," said Whitehouse. "I'm grateful to Senator Cassidy for joining me to reintroduce this bill that takes a major step toward ending the primary care shortage and health cost crisis we're seeing across the country."

"Those who deliver high-quality primary care make patients healthier and the health care system run more efficiently. They should be supported by a payment system that recognizes that value," said Cassidy.

Whitehouse and Cassidy's Pay PCPs Act would invest $10 billion in primary care, giving practices greater flexibility to spend their time and resources where patients need them most while strengthening the primary care workforce and improving patients' access to care. The bill would also lay the groundwork for broader, long-term Medicare physician payment reform by establishing a Technical Advisory Committee to recommend improvements to how physician services are valued and paid.

Together, these reforms would make an immediate investment in primary care while building a path toward a more sustainable Medicare payment system that better serves patients and providers.

The Pay PCPs Act is endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, Families USA, The American College of Lifestyle Medicine, the Primary Care Collaborative, and the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

"Every family deserves a trusted primary care provider who prioritizes keeping them healthy, not just treating them when they're sick - and for too long, our payment system has shortchanged the primary care providers on the frontlines of keeping people out of the emergency room and living healthier lives. The Pay PCPs Act takes a critical step to strengthen primary care payment by shifting away from a system that pays providers for how many tests and procedures they deliver and instead pays primary care providers for what they do best: effectively managing the health and health conditions of their patients. This new primary care payment model will give providers the predictable and flexible payments they need to better serve their communities and keep their patients healthy. We applaud Senators Whitehouse and Cassidy for this bipartisan leadership, which will mean better, more coordinated care for families and a stronger, more sustainable health care system for everyone," said Sophia Tripoli, Managing Director of Health Policy at Families USA.

"The American College of Lifestyle Medicine is grateful to Senators Whitehouse and Cassidy for creating a payment pathway that expands the work of primary care physicians, including those working in lifestyle medicine, an evidence-based medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions to prevent, treat, and reverse chronic conditions. Only with innovative, bipartisan payment policy can we tackle our nation's chronic disease epidemic," said John Findley, MD, Chief Executive Officer of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

"The Pay PCPs Act is an important step in providing primary care with the resources and flexibility needed to improve the health of those on Medicare - especially those with chronic conditions. Pairing stronger investments in primary care with hybrid payments will provide clinicians with an off-ramp from a broken fee-for-service system that has undervalued primary care for far too long. We are grateful that Sen. Whitehouse and Sen. Cassidy are continuing to champion high-quality, whole-person primary care," said Ann Greiner, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Primary Care Collaborative.

"The AAFP thanks Senators Whitehouse and Cassidy for leading bipartisan legislation to reform the way we pay for primary care in Medicare. The AAFP has long advocated in support of providing primary care physicians and practices with prospective, sustainable revenue streams that allow them to tailor the care they deliver to their patient's needs. We have also long urged that financial barriers to accessing primary care for patients, such as cost-sharing, be waived. We are encouraged to see Congressional efforts heeding these calls to increase investment in primary care and improve access for patients," said Sarah C. Nosal, MD, FAAFP, President of the American Academy of Family Physicians.

"The American Association of Nurse Practitioners, on behalf of more than 461,000 nurse practitioners nationwide, commends Senators Whitehouse and Cassidy for the introduction of the Pay PCPs Act. This bill would lead to long overdue reforms in how we value and pay for primary care, and remove barriers to access for patients and clinicians alike. Nurse practitioners are critical to ensuring patients have access to high-quality primary care, and we look forward to partnering to improve primary care delivery across the country,"said American Academy of Nurse Practitioners President Valerie J. Fuller, PhD, DNP.

Full text of the bill is available here.