On December 21, Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) released the Manager's Amendment to the base Senate health reform bill. The Manager's Amendment prevents a funding gap from occurring between Jan. 1, 2010 and March 2010. During this time, the urban ground base rate increase of 2% and the rural ground increase of 3% would have expired until they were set to be reinstated in April 2010. (The air-specific rural definition was impacted by the same funding gap.) The Manager's Amendment prevents the lapse in payments from occurring. In addition, the Super Rural 22.6% ground bonus payments that were set to expire on Dec. 31, 2009, were continued through calendar year 2010.