When Congress returns from its weeklong recess for the Presidents Day holiday, there will be only a few days left to decide what to do about the governmentwide sequestration cuts scheduled for March 1: come up with a compromise to block them, delay them, or let them kick in. Under the sequestration agreed to in July 2011, federal budget cuts would total $1.2 trillion over 10 years, with the ax falling equally on defense and most nondefense spending. The draconian cuts, agreed to in a deal to increase the federal debt ceiling limit, were intended to force lawmakers and the White House to reach an accord that would begin to reduce the deficit. Medicare is slated for a cut up to a maximum of 2 percent, including payment reductions for clinical laboratories, physicians, and hospitals. If that takes effect, the program would be cut by $11 billion in 2013 or $100 billion over 10 years, according to the Office of Management and Budget. While beneficiaries are spared, they could feel the effects if the cuts lead physicians to stop treating Medicare patients, notes the College of American Pathologists. At press time, the outlook for avoiding the sequestration deadline is anyone’s…
