Obama signs bill delaying Medicare cuts

Washington - President Barack Obama has signed a bill that delays until Dec. 1 a previously approved 21 percent cut in Medicare payments, the Associated Press reports.

There was some urgency to approve the $6.5 billion bill, as Medicare was to begin processing claims at the lower rate in late June. The measure is retroactive to June 1.

The “doc fix” funding had been separated from a larger measure that would extend unemployment benefits for laid-off workers and provide states with billions of dollars to avert layoffs. That bill has been blocked by Senate Republicans because of its cost.