In the complex and ever-evolving world of health care, Medicare has found itself stuck in the past. Today, it is desperately in need of an update to support our nation’s doctors. Despite years of rising costs for the backbone of our nation’s healthcare system — physicians remain the only provider type working in the Medicare system whose Medicare payments are not adjusted for inflation on an annual basis.

Hospices, hospitals, and nursing centers all receive annual payment updates to reflect rising inflation, but payments to physicians have been stuck at the same rate for years. Why do policymakers not realize that asking doctors to do more and more with less and less is unsustainable?

Congress and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) must work together to address and mitigate the financial instability of the Medicare physician payment system. If corrective action is not taken to ensure physician payments reflect the actual cost of providing care amid rising inflation, it could have long-lasting negative repercussions for providers and patients alike.

Medicare Trustees’ data vividly highlight the problem. When accounting for these increased medical costs as well as the overall rate of inflation—which has skyrocketed by 73% over the past 22 years — Medicare physician pay has actually declined by 26% since 2001. Meanwhile, the actual cost to run a medical practice has increased by nearly 50% in that same timeframe. This is clearly an unsustainable situation that will only make it that much harder for physician practices to keep their doors open, much less expand their practices or scope of services for Medicare beneficiaries.

The past few years have been exceptionally hard on America’s physicians, with the pandemic exacerbating the financial and workforce challenges many practices were already grappling with. As Medicare physician payments continue to fall behind rising medical costs, the entire reimbursement system poses a direct threat to physician practices. Without adequate support, many practices may be forced to close their doors altogether or face consolidation with larger hospitals and health systems. Either way, patients lose — particularly in rural and underserved areas where care is already harder to come by. If the federal government is truly dedicated to expanding seniors’ access to care, cutting Medicare rates is not the way to do it.

Without congressional action, the freeze on Medicare physician payments is set to continue until 2026. However, even then, payment updates will only resume at a negligible 0.25%. This is still insufficient to account for the rising medical, workforce, and administrative costs that physician practices face.

Fortunately, a group of bipartisan physician legislators in the House has introduced legislation that would help address this issue before it comes to that. Authored and sponsored by representatives who are doctors, Larry Bucshon, Indiana; Raul Ruiz, California; Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Iowa; and Ami Bera, California; the Strengthening Medicare for Patients and Providers Act (HR 2474) would ensure physicians receive annual inflationary updates. If passed, the legislation would ensure doctors are treated like other types of providers and help stabilize America’s health care system at a time of unparalleled challenge. Most importantly, it would help ensure senior’s continued access to the medical services they need.

Physicians deserve a payment system that accurately reflects the cost of running a practice and providing care. Without such a system, we will see more doctors leaving the field and more practices scaling back their services or shutting down altogether. We cannot allow that to happen. Congress has the power to help avoid this doomsday scenario by passing HR 2474 to help reform the flawed Medicare physician payment system and protect patient access to high-quality, comprehensive care.

Do you have a point you’d like to make or an issue you feel strongly about? Submit a letter to the editor or a guest column.