Billions in proposed cuts draw AAFP's ire

Proposed legislation calling for billions in funding cuts that would eliminate the Agency for Health Research and Quality (AHRQ) and Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) drew quick criticism from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP).

The AAFP's board chairman, Roland Goertz, MD, MBA, says the proposal fails to provide "sound and appropriate investments to patient-centered research and the nation's primary care infrastructure."

His comments were sent in a 2-page letter to the House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Committee on Appropriations and outlines several concerns with the legislation, specifically the termination of the AHRQ and the $1 billion proposed cut for the Prevention and Public Health Fund, which was authorized by the Affordable Care Act in 2013. The legislation also omitted $1.59 billion for the CMMI, which works in collaboration with the AAFP on a comprehensive initiative to support Patient-Centered Medical Homes in various markets.