The AMA Wire reports the following action on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule: 

*3-month Medicare payment update approved for Jan. 1

*Congress has adopted a 0.5 percent update to Medicare payments for three months, following a bipartisan vote of 64 to 36 in the U.S.  Senate  Wednesday afternoon.

*The president is expected to sign the legislation Friday.

The payment increase staves off a 24 percent cut required by the failed SGR formula and buys three months for Congress to complete its work on SGR repeal legislation without further disruption to the Medicare program. It is the first positive update since 2010.