I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8496 
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to revise payment amounts 
for results of COVID–19 PCR diagnostic panels, to require laboratories 
to furnish the results of such panels within 28 days as a condition 
of participation under such title, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 1, 2020 
Ms. SHERRILL (for herself, Ms. DELBENE, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, Mr. 
THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. ENGEL, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SUOZZI, and 
Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to 
the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to revise 
payment amounts for results of COVID–19 PCR diag-
nostic panels, to require laboratories to furnish the re-
sults of such panels within 28 days as a condition of 
participation under such title, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:51 Nov 04, 2020
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H8496.IH
H8496
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Strictly Pay for Effi-
cient and Expedited Delivery of Your COVID-19 Tests 
Act’’ or the ‘‘SPEEDY COVID-19 Tests Act’’. 
SEC. 2. REVISION TO PAYMENT AMOUNTS FOR RESULTS OF 
COVID–19 PCR DIAGNOSTIC PANELS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1834A of the Social Secu-
rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m–1) is amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(j) PAYMENT FOR DELAYED RESULTS OF COVID– 
19 PCR DIAGNOSTIC PANELS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a clinical di-
agnostic laboratory test that is the ‘CDC 2019 
Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time Reverse 
Transcriptase (RT)–PCR Diagnostic Panel’, during 
the 
emergency 
period 
described 
in 
section 
1135(g)(1)(B) beginning of the date of the enact-
ment of this subsection, subject to paragraph (2), if 
the laboratory furnishes the result of such test to 
the physician or provider of services from which such 
test was ordered— 
‘‘(A) during the period that is not more 
than 24 hours after such test was so ordered, 
the amount of payment for such test shall be 
125 percent of the amount of payment under 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
04:18 Oct 29, 2020
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H8496.IH
H8496
this section on the date of the enactment of this 
subsection; 
‘‘(B) during the period that is more than 
24 hours and less than 48 hours after such test 
was so ordered, the amount of payment for 
such test shall be 100 percent of the amount of 
payment under this section on the date of the 
enactment of this subsection; 
‘‘(C) during the period that is more than 
48 hours and less than 72 hours after such test 
was so ordered, payment for such test shall be 
100 percent of the amount of payment under 
this section on the first date of such emergency 
period; and 
‘‘(D) during the period that is at least 72 
hours after such test was so ordered, payment 
may not be made for such test under this sec-
tion. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION
FOR
COVID–19
PCR
DIAG-
NOSTIC PANELS FURNISHED IN RURAL AND MEDI-
CALLY UNDERSERVED AREAS.—In the case of a phy-
sician or provider of services that furnishes a test 
described in paragraph (1) in a rural or medically 
underserved area, for purposes of determining the 
applicable period under such paragraph, the number 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
04:18 Oct 29, 2020
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H8496.IH
H8496
of hours from which the laboratory furnished the re-
sult of the test to the physician or provider of serv-
ices after such test was ordered shall be reduced by 
36 hours.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1834A of 
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m–1), as amended 
by subsection (a), is further amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘Sub-
ject to paragraph (3) and subsections (c) and 
(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to paragraph (3) 
and subsections (c), (d), and (j)’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Pay-
ment’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to subsection (j), 
payment’’; 
(2) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ‘‘subject to 
subsection (j),’’ before ‘‘payment’’; and 
(3) in subsection (d)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting 
‘‘subject to subsection (j),’’ before ‘‘the pay-
ment amount’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Subject 
to paragraph (4)’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to 
paragraph (4) and subsection (j)’’. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
04:18 Oct 29, 2020
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H8496.IH
H8496
SEC. 3. CONDITION OF PARTICIPATION FOR LABORA-
TORIES 
TO 
FURNISH 
THE 
RESULTS 
OF 
COVID–19 PCR DIAGNOSTIC PANELS WITHIN 
28 DAYS. 
Section 1866(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395cc(a)(1)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (Y)(ii)— 
(A) in subclause (IV)(bb), by striking at 
the end ‘‘and’’; and 
(B) in subclause (V), by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (Y)(ii)(V) 
the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(Z) in the case of a laboratory that re-
ceives an order from a physician or provider of 
services to furnish the result of a test described 
in section 1834A(j)(1) during the emergency 
period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B), to 
furnish the result to the physician or provider 
of services from which such test was ordered 
during the period that is 28 days after such 
test was so ordered.’’. 
Æ 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
04:18 Oct 29, 2020
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H8496.IH
H8496