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January 20, 2025

New Congress, New Plan

The presidential inauguration will take place today, Monday, January 20. The AAN will continue to monitor any proposals from the incoming administration and advocate for the needs of our members and their patients.  

Issue in Focus

As covered in our last edition of Capitol Hill Report, Congress failed to act on several health care policies that are vital to patients with neurological conditions. Telehealth extension, prior authorization reform, and a fix for the 2.8% cut to Medicare physician reimbursement that went into effect on January 1 of this year were not addressed, in addition to other health care priorities. Congress was only able to pass a stop gap funding bill that kept the government running through March 14, 2025. While we wanted to see these issues addressed at the end of last year, this new deadline gives us another opportunity to have them considered by Congress.  

With this new Congress sworn in and putting together a large new legislative package to be considered by March 14, the AAN is working hard to ensure these issues and other priorities for our members are addressed as soon as possible.  
 
Medicare Physician Reimbursement 
The 2.8% cut to the conversion factor in the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) has not yet been addressed by Congress. The AAN is working tirelessly with our colleagues in the physician community and our champions in Congress to get a full fix to the cut included in the final fiscal year 2025 funding package.  

We also understand that this one-time fix is not enough, and that the structural issues with the MPFS need to be addressed to bring stability to the system. We will continue to work with Congress to push legislation that will make more permanent reforms to the system, including adjustments to budget neutrality requirements, and give CMS the ability to address overestimates in utilization for new codes.  

Neuroscience Research Funding 
The AAN has been working with our partners in neuroscience research and patient communities to advocate for increased funding for research that impacts patients with neurological conditions at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This includes pushing for increased budgets for the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the Brain Research Through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. Since the fiscal year 2025 budget has not yet been finalized, our first priority in the new Congress is to advocate for increased funding for the remainder of this year’s budget. Looking ahead, the AAN is also working with our champions in the House Neuroscience Caucus to reauthorize funding for the BRAIN Initiative, which expires at the end of this year. 

Utilization Management Reform 
Two pieces of legislation that have been top AAN advocacy priorities, the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act and the Safe Step Act, both failed to pass in the 118^th Congress. These bills, which would streamline the prior authorization and step therapy exceptions process, made tremendous progress in the previous Congress and are well situated to advance in the 119^th Congress. AAN staff is working with our partners to get this legislation reintroduced so it can be considered as soon as possible.  

Increasing the Neurology Workforce 

The AAN will continue to be a leader in the effort to reauthorize the Conrad 30 program. This program allows non-US international medical graduates who are pursuing their graduate medical education in the US to receive a waiver that allows them to stay in the country immediately after their education ends if they practice in a rural or underserved area. This program, which has brought numerous neurologists into communities that desperately needed access to quality neurological care, needs to be reauthorized.  

Caring for America’s Veterans 

The AAN, along with our partners in the patient advocacy community, has led efforts in Congress to expand funding for the Neurology Centers of Excellence at the Veterans Health Administration. These centers, focused on multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, headache, and epilepsy, help provide cutting-edge care to veterans with neurological conditions and conduct research that helps the broader population affected by these conditions. We will continue to push for expanded funding for these centers so our doctors at the VA can reach more affected veterans.  

These are just a few of the legislative priorities the AAN will be focused on in the 119^th Congress. If you have questions about our advocacy work or how you can get involved, don’t hesitate to contact us at advocacy@aan.com. 

Latest Advocacy News

Neuroscience Champion Announced as Congressional Neuroscience Caucus Co-chair 
Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA) was announced this month as co-chair of the Congressional Neuroscience Caucus (CNC) for the 119^th Congress, joining Representative Morgan Luttrell (R-TX). Rep. Thompson succeeds Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), caucus co-founder, following his retirement. A Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient, Rep. Thompson has been a champion for neuroscience. He has led efforts to improve care for service members suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries, recently introducing the Mental Health Research Accelerator Act as a member of the House Ways & Means Committee. The CNC co-chairs will jointly lead efforts to advance brain research and innovation, including supporting the NIH's BRAIN Initiative. 

Drug Enforcement Administration Issues Proposals Impacting Telemedicine 
Last week, the Drug Enforcement Administration issued three proposals impacting the prescribing of controlled substances via telemedicine. These proposals seek to set forth a regulatory framework for the prescribing of controlled substances via telehealth following the termination of temporary regulatory flexibilities stemming from the Covid-19 public health emergency. Most notably, one of the proposed rules proposes to establish a “Special Registration” process to allow approved clinicians to prescribe controlled substances without requiring in-person medical evaluations beforehand. The AAN is currently reviewing the proposed rules and plans to submit comments. 

What We're Reading

• SCOTUS agrees to hear challenge to Obamacare’s preventative care coverage ()
• New Year, New Congress, New Health Agenda (Podcast – ) 
• HHS Announces 15 Additional Drugs Selected for Medicare Drug Price Negotiations in Continued Effort to Lower Prescription Drug Costs for Seniors ()