What They're Saying: Support for the Patients First Act

Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health will hold a legislative hearing titled Examining Legislative Proposals to Reform Medicare Provider Payment and Bolster Health Care Cybersecurity. The hearing will examine Congressman John Joyce, M.D.’s Patients First Act of 2026 (H.R. 9693).

Introduced in July alongside Reps. Kim Schrier, M.D. (WA-08) and Greg Murphy, M.D. (NC-03), the bipartisan legislation is necessary to keep patients healthy, preserve competition, and deliver affordability. 

The comprehensive, solution-focused Patients First Act has received support from health care organizations across the country. Here’s what they’re saying about the legislation:

American College of Physicians: “ACP strongly supports this critical legislation, which would strengthen Medicare beneficiaries’ access to care and help independent physician practices remain financially viable. These objectives are especially important in rural and underserved communities, where the number of independent physician practices has declined significantly over the last several decades. The continued loss of independent physician practices can further limit access to care, requiring patients to travel longer distances or wait longer to see a physician.”

American Osteopathic Association: “The American Osteopathic Association, alongside the 62 undersigned osteopathic specialty colleges and divisional societies – collectively representing more than 207,000 osteopathic physicians and medical students across the United States – share an unwavering belief that everyone deserves access to quality, affordable health care. Our organizations strongly support the introduction of the Patients First Act, which would bring Medicare physician payment into the 21st century while strengthening access to care for patients across the country. We urge you to pass this bipartisan legislation to ensure your constituents have access to the care they need.”

American Society of Anesthesiology: "This legislation represents a serious and constructive effort to address longstanding weaknesses in the Medicare physician payment system. Most importantly, it would replace inadequate and unpredictable payment updates with annual updates tied to the Medicare Economic Index, helping physician practices keep pace with the rising costs of delivering high-quality care to Medicare patients."  

American Urological Association: “These reforms will help preserve patient access to specialty care while providing physicians with the stability necessary to invest in their practices, workforce, and the delivery of high-quality care. The legislation also strengthens the long-term transition to value-based care by establishing a more sustainable foundation for physician participation in innovative payment models.” 

National Association of Accountable Care Organizations: “These policies address long-standing challenges that have threatened access to high-quality care for America’s seniors. Clinicians cannot take a pay cut, and their pay must reflect the ongoing investment required to provide care.”

United States of Care: “The Patients First Act is the product of serious, sustained bipartisan collaboration, and is a critical first step in prioritizing whole-person, patient-first primary care. By advancing a demonstration program that supports independent primary care practices, moving us away from a broken payment model, and allowing participating primary care providers to prioritize keeping people healthy, this bill puts people at the center of care in a way that is long overdue. Critically, this bill also eliminates cost-sharing for patients for certain primary care services in the demonstration program, removing a major affordability barrier for people covered by Medicare. We thank Representatives Joyce, Schrier, Murphy, and the bipartisan coalition of cosponsors for their leadership, and we look forward to continued collaboration on these efforts as the legislative process moves forward." 

Read the Section by Section HERE.

Read the full bill text HERE.

View the List of Support HERE.