Reaction to the Senate’s version of an Affordable Care Act repeal-and-replace plan, titled the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) ranged from strong opposition from physician and hospital groups to outrage from Democrats, while one insurance organization saw some positives in the legislation.

Groups representing physicians, hospitals, internists and health IT were quick to praise the proposed rule for the second year of the new payment tracks under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). The American Medical Group Association, however, has a decidedly different take.

The legislation takes many provisions from the House-passed American Health Care Act (AHCA) under a new name: the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA).

The American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Hospital Association (AHA) appear pleased with the proposed rule for the second year of the Quality Payment Program (QPP), with some groups reserving judgment until they have time to review the 1,058-page regulation.

The proposed rule for the second year of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act’s (MACRA) Quality Payment Program (QPP) has been released by CMS, with its stated goal to “simplify the program, especially for small, independent, and rural practices, while ensuring fiscal sustainability and high-quality care.”

In his first blog post since being named to lead the Office of National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC), Donald Rucker, MD, focused mostly on his own “journey” through medical school, the early days of electronic health records and working as chief medical officer at Siemens.

Senate Republican leaders appear to be sticking to their goal of holding a vote on the American Health Care Act (AHCA), their vehicle for repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act, by the end of June, despite resistance from both Democrats and the healthcare industry on legislation that has yet to be released.

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval has vetoed legislation to create a Medicaid buy-in option in the state.