Lame Duck Provides An Opportunity To Pass SGR Deal, Lawmakers Say

Lame Duck Provides An Opportunity To Pass SGR Deal, Lawmakers Say-insidehealthpolicy:  The GOP Doctors Caucus and more than 110 lawmakers are urging House leadership to resume negotiations on the stalled Medicare physician payment reform deal when Congress resumes following the elections, and one Democratic Ways & Means staffer said the lame duck session is a prime opportunity for Congress to pass a deal to replace the Sustainable Growth Rate before new committee leaders take over. The staffer also said that Rep. Sander Levin (MI), the ranking Democrat on Ways & Means, would like to pass the SGR deal without offsetting the entire package, though lobbyists say it is unlikely that Republicans would allow that to happen.