America’s senior population is the largest it has ever been and is predicted to nearly double by 2050. To meet the needs of this growing population, our leaders must ensure the stability and security of the Medicare program.
Kentucky has a significant stake in this effort. One-fifth of the state’s population was enrolled in Medicare in 2024, and many residents face high rates of chronic diseases.
Heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and chronic lower respiratory disease remain among the leading causes of death. Managing these conditions effectively requires proactive intervention, slowing their progression, and even preventing them from occurring in the first place. However, the ability to effectively manage these chronic conditions is increasingly threatened by financial pressures on physicians, driven by years of Medicare cuts.
While hospitals, hospices, and skilled nursing centers all receive annual, inflation-based Medicare payments, physicians are left out. Over the last 20 years, Medicare payments have fallen by more than one-third when adjusted for inflation. Meanwhile, the costs of running a practice have risen by 47%. The math simply doesn’t work.
For many independent practices, particularly in rural areas, this financial strain makes it difficult to sustain operations. Some have been forced to scale back services, merge with larger healthcare systems, or stop accepting new Medicare patients altogether. Without financial stability, physicians cannot continue to serve their communities.
Reforming Medicare reimbursement policies is critical to maintaining physician practices. In the long term, Congress must stop the erosion of payments by tying Medicare reimbursement to inflation, as it does for hospitals.
More urgently, lawmakers must address the 2.8% cuts implemented by the federal government on all private practice doctors this year. These reductions are already having drastic effects. If local healthcare providers are forced to close their doors, Medicare patients will bear the greatest burden. To help, Congress recently introduced the Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act (HR 879).
This bipartisan legislation is essential. KMA requests Kentucky’s federal delegation and all of our leaders in Washington to help pass it. As healthcare costs rise and our population ages, now is the time to act. Congress must support HR 879 to help protect physicians and ensure the Medicare program remains strong for generations to come.
Dr. Evelyn Montgomery Jones, MD is the President of the Kentucky Medical Association.