Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) in medically underserved areas would receive a 30 percent boost in payment from the Medicare program under a proposal released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released last week. The proposal includes a single encounter rate per beneficiary per day for all services. It would be adjusted for a variety of factors, including geographical cost variations and higher costs related to new patients. The proposal, developed by CMS in conjunction with the Health Resources Services Administration, is intended to ensure patient populations have reliable access to quality care. Article