The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) today released results from its annual survey in September 2010 of access to physician services.

“This survey shows that Medicare continues to provide access to physician care that is equal to or better than that available to Americans in private plans, despite Republican claims to the contrary,” said Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

MedPAC’s survey is the first nationally representative survey from 2010 to measure access to care among seniors and older Americans not yet eligible for Medicare.  Its findings inform the Commission’s recommendations for payment rate changes and other policies.

According to the survey, 83% of Medicare patients seeking care for illness or injury reported “never” having to wait longer than desired to see a doctor, compared to 80% for privately insured Americans between the ages of 50 and 64.  Similarly, of the only 7% of Medicare patients seeking a new primary care physician in 2010, 79% reported no problem in finding a physician compared to 69% for privately insured patients.  That amounts to just 1.5% of Medicare enrollees experiencing any difficulty in finding a new primary care doctor in 2010 as compared to about 2.2% of privately insured patients.

“These results are a tribute to the professionalism of America’s physicians,” said Rep. Waxman.  “They continue to see to the needs of their Medicare patients despite their justifiable frustration with Congress’s inability to stabilize the physician payment system.  In return, in order to continue to maintain the ability of Medicare patients and military families to see their doctors, it’s essential that the 111^th Congress act to provide certainty in physician payments.”

If Congress does not pass new legislation before the end of 2010, payment rates to physicians in Medicare and TRICARE, the civilian health program for military families, will be reduced by 25% on January 1, 2011.