PALS Act

To ensure access to screening mammography services. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protecting Access to Lifesaving Screenings Act PALS Act 2. Ensuring access to screening mammography services (a) In general Effective during the period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act and ending January 1, 2018, any provision of law that refers (including through cross-reference to another provision of law) to the current recommendations of the United States Preventive Services Task Force with respect to breast cancer screening, mammography, and prevention shall be administered by the Secretary involved as if— (1) such reference to such current recommendations were a reference to the recommendations of such Task Force with respect to breast cancer screening, mammography, and prevention last issued before 2009; and (2) such recommendations last issued before 2009 applied to any screening mammography modality under section 1861(jj) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395x(jj) (b) Codification of current Medicare coverage and payment policies (1) Definition Section 1861(jj) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395x(jj) , including any digital modality of such a procedure, radiologic procedure (2) Coinsurance Section 1833(a)(1)(Y) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395l(a)(1)(Y) or are services described in section 1861(jj) population (3) Frequency Section 1834(c)(2)(B)(ii) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395m(c)(2)(B)(ii) for women described only in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) (c) GAO study and report (1) Study The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study on the methodologies and processes by which the United States Preventive Services Task Force develops recommendations regarding preventive services, including the transparency of such methodologies and processes, the engagement of stakeholders in such methodologies and processes, the responses of the Task Force to comments from stakeholders regarding draft research plans, draft evidence reviews, and draft recommendations, and the propriety of the data and other information on which the Task Force relies in developing a recommendation regarding a preventive service. (2) Report The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and to the appropriate committees of Congress, not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, a report on the results of the study conducted under paragraph (1), including any recommendations for administrative or legislative changes the Comptroller General determines necessary or appropriate to improve the methodologies and processes by which the United States Preventive Services Task Force develops recommendations regarding preventive services.

Summary: Protecting Access to Lifesaving Screenings Act or the PALS Act This bill requires that any provision of law referring to current recommendations of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) with respect to breast cancer screening, mammography, and prevention be administered as if: (1) the provision referred to USPSTF recommendations last issued before 2009; and (2) those recommendations applied to any screening mammography modality, including any digital modality of such a procedure. (In 2009, USPSTF updated its guidelines to recommend against routine screening mammography for women between 40 to 49 years of age and to recommend biennial, instead of annual, screening mammography for most women between 50 to 74 years of age.) In addition, the bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to preserve Medicare coverage for screening mammography, without a requirement for coinsurance, and expand the definition of screening mammography to include any digital modality of such a procedure. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid may not revise the frequency with which screening mammography may be paid by Medicare for a woman over 39 years of age.