I 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6851 

To amend the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and the CARES 

Act to establish new coverage and payment rules for certain COVID– 

19 diagnostic tests and related items and services, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 25, 2022 

Mr. PALLONE (for himself and Mr. SCOTT of Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within 

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and 

the CARES Act to establish new coverage and payment 

rules for certain COVID–19 diagnostic tests and related 

items and services, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘No Surprises for 

5 COVID–19 Tests Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHING NEW COVERAGE AND PAYMENT 

2 RULES FOR CERTAIN COVID–19 DIAGNOSTIC 

3 TESTS AND RELATED ITEMS AND SERVICES. 

4 (a) EXTENSION OF COVERAGE REQUIREMENT.—Sec5 tion 6001(a) of the Families First Coronavirus Response 

6 Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b–5 note) is amended in the matter 

7 preceding paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘any portion of the 

8 emergency period defined in paragraph (1)(B) of section 

9 1135(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b– 

10 5(g)) beginning on or after the date of the enactment of 

11 this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘the period beginning on the date 

12 of the enactment of this Act and ending on December 31, 

13 2023’’. 

14 (b) PAYMENT AND BILLING RULES FOR ITEMS AND

15 SERVICES FURNISHED AFTER END OF PUBLIC HEALTH

16 EMERGENCY.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3202 of the CARES 

18 Act (42 U.S.C. 42 U.S.C. 256b note) is amended— 

19 (A) in subsection (a), in the matter pre20 ceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘that are 

21 furnished before May 1, 2022,’’ after ‘‘(Public 

22 Law 116–127)’’; 

23 (B) in subsection (b)(1), by striking 

24 ‘‘emergency period declared under section 319 

25 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

26 247d)’’ and inserting ‘‘period beginning on the 


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1 date of the enactment of this subsection and 

2 ending on April 31, 2022’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

4 subsection: 

5 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF SURPRISE BILLING PROVI6 SIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graph (2), the provisions of sections 2799A–1 and 

9 2799B–1 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 300gg–111, 300gg–131), 716 of the Em11 ployee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 

12 U.S.C. 1185e), and 9816 of the Internal Revenue 

13 Code of 1986 shall apply to items and services de14 scribed in section 6001(a) of division F of the Fami15 lies First Coronavirus Response Act (Public Law 

16 116–127) furnished on or after May 1, 2022, and 

17 before January 1, 2024, to an enrollee of a group 

18 health plan or group or individual health insurance 

19 coverage by a provider that does not have a nego20 tiated rate in effect with such plan or coverage (as 

21 applicable) as if such items and services were emer22 gency services furnished by a nonparticipating pro23 vider in an emergency department of a hospital. 

24 ‘‘(2) NONAPPLICATION TO OVER-THE-COUNTER

25 TESTS.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect 


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1 to any over-the-counter test specified in the guidance 

2 document published by the Department of Labor on 

3 January 10, 2022, entitled ‘FAQs about Affordable 

4 Care Act Implementation Part 51, Families First 

5 Coronavirus Response Act and Coronavirus Aid, Re6 lief, and Economic Security Act Implementation’ or 

7 any other over-the-counter test specified by the Sec8 retary pursuant to section 6001(a)(1) of the Fami9 lies First Coronavirus Response Act. 

10 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

11 terms ‘emergency services’ and ‘nonparticipating 

12 provider’ have the meanings given such terms in 

13 subparagraphs (C)(i) and (G), respectively, of sec14 tions 2799A–1(a)(3) of the Public Health Service 

15 Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–111(a)(3)), 716(a)(3) of the 

16 Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 

17 (29 U.S.C. 1185e(a)(3)), and section 9816(a)(3) of 

18 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 

19 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.—Notwithstanding any 

20 other provision of law, the Secretaries of Health and 

21 Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury may im22 plement the amendments made by this subsection by 

23 subregulatory guidance or otherwise. 

Æ 


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