Beginning in January, doctors will be facing nearly a 25 percent cut in Medicare reimbursement rates.

There’s widespread agreement that the formula for Medicare reimbursement, often referred to as the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR), is flawed.

AARP believes Medicare reimbursements should be based on quality not quantity, appropriately valuing primary care service while addressing the imbalance with specialty care. This would help strengthen the overall primary care workforce.

New delivery models of care should also be considered, like medical homes and Accountable Care Organizations. This would improve overall coordination of care.

What should not happen is a cost-shifting onto seniors. People on Medicare should not be forced to sacrifice benefits or pay higher costs to compensate for a budgetary offset. The average senior already spends nearly 20 percent of their income on health care.

The time for Congress to address SGR is now, as the CBO recently revised its cost estimate for fixing the SGR to $139 billion for 10 years, down from a previous estimate of $245-300 billion.

AARP urges Congress to use this opportunity to improve the Medicare reimbursement system.