Top stories of Advocacy Update: September 2026

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Week of Sept. 25

1. Proposed Medicaid provider tax rule would place overly broad restrictions on state tax policies

   1. Sept. 25, 2026

   2. CMS' proposal would broaden the application of Medicaid provider tax restrictions beyond what is required by statute. AMA policy supports the use of provider taxes to sustain or improve Medicaid patients' access to care and opposes federal proposals that would restrict or eliminate states' ability to assess provider taxes for these purposes.

2. AMA urges CMS to stay the course on electronic prior authorization

   1. Sept. 25, 2026

   2. The AMA warned that delaying enforcement could slow development, testing and deployment of electronic prior authorization, leaving physician practices dependent on faxes, phone calls, payer portals and repeated data entry while patients continue to wait for medically necessary care.

3. New members appointed to U.S. Preventive Services Task Force 

   1. Sept. 25, 2026

   2. “The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) plays an important role in helping physicians and patients make evidence-based decisions about preventive care. Its credibility has been built on a membership grounded in prevention and primary care—the physicians who routinely deliver preventive services and understand how recommendations translate into clinical practice," says a statement from AMA President Willie Underwood III, MD, MSc, MPH. "The composition of this new slate represents a significant departure from the Task Force’s traditional membership." 

View the Sept. 25 issue

• Sept. 25, 2026: National Advocacy Update

Week of Sept. 18

1. AMA, state societies back Patients First Act

   1. Sept. 18, 2026

   2. Sent to Reps. John Joyce, MD, Greg Murphy, MD, and Kim Schrier, MD, an AMA-led letter signed by state medical societies representing physicians from all 50 states and the District of Columbia commended their bipartisan leadership and says the legislation would replace the annual cycle of Medicare payment cuts and temporary patches with a system that is more stable, predictable and reflective of the real costs of delivering care. 

2. Energy and Commerce hearing highlights Patients First Act 

   1. Sept. 18, 2026

   2. The hearing comes at a critical time for Medicare physician payment reform. When adjusted for inflation in practice costs, Medicare physician payment has fallen approximately 33% since 2001, and physicians remain the only Medicare provider type that does not receive an annual payment update tied to inflation. 

3. AMA urges CMS to significantly modify proposed 2027 physician payment policies

   1. Sept. 18, 2026

   2. In a 171-page comment letter responding to proposed regulations for the 2027 Medicare physician payment schedule, the AMA strongly recommends that CMS change the proposed policies before issuing its final regulations, expressing particular concern about several proposals.   

View the Sept. 18 issue

• Sept. 18, 2026: National Advocacy Update
• Sept. 18, 2026: State Advocacy Update
• Sept. 18, 2026: Judicial Advocacy Update

Week of Sept. 11

1. Leadership Viewpoint: Delays in reforming Medicare, prior auth harm patients

   1. Sept. 11, 2026

   2. "Patients should not have to fight the healthcare system to get the care they need and deserve," says AMA President Willie Underwood III, MD, MSc, MPH. "Yet that is exactly what too many face today. An unstable Medicare payment system threatens their ability to see a physician, while burdensome prior authorization requirements often delay or deny medically necessary care."

2. Highly anticipated guidance on medical frailty exclusion for new Medicaid work requirements released

   1. Sept. 11, 2026
   2. The new guidance from CMS provides states with a three-tiered verification framework for the medical frailty exclusion. The guidance comes after a June 3 Interim Final Rule in which CMS significantly narrowed the exclusion from new Medicaid work and community engagement requirements scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

3. 2027 proposed Medicare fee schedule: What physicians need to know

   1. Sept. 11, 2026
   2. The 2027 Medicare physician payment schedule proposed rule includes proposals on same-day E/M services, maternity care codes, remote monitoring and more. These proposed policy changes would take place Jan. 1 if they are part of the finalized rule.

View the Sept. 11 issue

• Sept. 11, 2026: National Advocacy Update
• Sept. 11, 2026: State Advocacy Update

Week of Sept. 4

1. Federation urges CMS to withdraw modifier 25 payment cut

   1. Sept. 4, 2026

   2. CMS characterizes the resource overlap it seeks to correct only as “likely,” without quantifying it, identifying the specific duplicated resources, or explaining what has changed since it declined to finalize a substantially similar, and narrower, proposal for CY 2019.

2. Doctors united on respiratory virus vaccine recommendations

   1. Sept. 4, 2026
   2. The respiratory virus season vaccine recommendations come from the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America. The recommendations are available at a new AMA website, SpreadTheFacts.org, and they were informed by a structured, evidence-based review process to assess vaccine safety and effectiveness for the 2026–2027 respiratory virus season. The effort was launched by the AMA and the Vaccine Integrity Project in Feb. 2026. Read the press release.  

3. Justice Department announces emergency scheduling of three potent kratom compounds

   1. Sept. 4, 2026
   2. According to the order, the three kratom-related compounds "pose an imminent hazard to public safety." The AMA continues to support legislative efforts banning synthesized, purified or derivative products from kratom for marketing, distribution, promotion and sale. 

View the Sept. 4 issue

• Sept. 4, 2026: National Advocacy Update

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