Medicare payments to doctors are locked in for the rest of the year, now that Congress has passed and the President has signed H.R. 3630.

That bill -- which delayed Medicare physician fee cuts called for by the Sustainable Growth Rate formula -- also extended the payroll tax holiday and benefits for the long-term unemployed.

Courtesy flickr/Caveman Chuck Coker/Creative Commons

Still, doctors' groups are dismayed that Congress once again "kicked the can" down the road instead of buckling down and solving this recurrent problem.

Has a golden opportunity been lost for good? 

To hear about that, and about federal fraud-busting efforts and new, tight deadlines to return Medicare overpayments, listen to the Policy & Practice Podcast: 

02/21/12