FaegreBDC vice president Nick Manetto and public policy specialist Allison Durham wrote an article appearing in Law360 explaining the ways the government shutdown is affecting health care policy. With the shutdown in its third week, the Congressional Calendar is jumbled, causing doubt that some actions won't be taken by year's end.

The current Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula would cut payments to providers caring for Medicare patients in 2014. Advocates and providers have long pushed for a permanent repeal of these cuts, but progress has slowed this year and may not regain momentum in time for 2014.

Other items discussed in the article include the sequestration, a medical device tax repeal, teh CHildren's Hospital Graduate Medical Education Bill, and Longer-term Medicare, entitlement and tax reform.