Recent events have left many hospitals and health care organizations wondering:  would they be better off taking their chances with cuts recommended by the new congressional “supercommittee” (the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction) or just accepting the two percent cut in Medicare payments that would automatically be triggered if Congress fails to adopt the committee’s recommendations?

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has put a tentative price tag on the cost of the automatic two percent cut in Medicare:  $123 billion over ten years.  Read in an article in The Hill about CBO’s estimate, what it means, and why some people may want to take their chances with the supercommittee while others might gladly settle for the two percent Medicare cut and the knowledge that Medicaid would be exempt from any automatic cuts.