Washington, DC – Provisions negotiated by Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) to end unfair geographic disparities in Medicare reimbursements and reform Medicare to incentivize high-value care are included in the final version of the Affordable Health Care for America Act, which is currently under consideration on the House floor.

“Throughout the health care reform debate, one of my top priorities has been ending the unfair and inefficient geographic disparities that prevent Iowa’s medical providers from receiving the compensation they deserve,” Braley said. “These provisions will finally end inaccurate Medicare reimbursement adjustments based on geography and move Medicare from a system that rewards volume of care over quality of care to one that provides Iowa’s doctors with the resources they need to continue providing high-quality, low-cost care.”

Just this week, the American Medical Association released a study confirming what Iowans have known for too long: that differences in geography have no actual bearing on physician practice expenses.