I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5927 
To delay for one year the release of the Overall Hospital Quality Star 
Ratings, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 25, 2016 
Mr. RENACCI (for himself and Miss RICE of New York) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To delay for one year the release of the Overall Hospital 
Quality Star Ratings, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hospital Quality Rat-
ing Transparency Act of 2016’’. 
SEC. 2. ONE-YEAR DELAY FOR RELEASE OF OVERALL HOS-
PITAL QUALITY STAR RATINGS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, with respect to any Overall Hospital 
Quality Star Ratings for hospitals (such as ratings gen-
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erated by the rating system described in the Fact Sheet 
issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 
through the QualityNet Internet website entitled ‘‘Overall 
Hospital Quality Star Ratings Fact Sheet, July 2016 Pre-
view Period’’)— 
(1) shall make publicly available detailed infor-
mation on the methodology used to calculate such 
Ratings; 
(2) shall have the validity and accuracy of such 
methodology confirmed by an independent statisti-
cian not otherwise engaged by the Secretary in star 
ratings measure development activities; 
(3) shall provide, with respect to the ratings 
system that is to use such methodology and data to 
calculate such Ratings, a public comment period 
that— 
(A) begins on a date that is after the date 
on which the Secretary, under paragraph (1), 
makes publicly available the detailed informa-
tion described in such paragraph; and 
(B) is at least 60 days in duration; and 
(4) may not make such Ratings publicly avail-
able (such as by publishing on the Internet website 
commonly known as the ‘‘Hospital Compare’’ 
website) on a date that is before the latest of— 
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(A) the date on which the independent 
statistician described in paragraph (2) provides 
the confirmation described in such paragraph; 
(B) the date on which the public comment 
period described in paragraph (3) concludes; 
and 
(C) July 31, 2017. 
(b) APPLICATION IN CASE OF PUBLICATION BEFORE 
ENACTMENT.—In the case that the Secretary publishes 
such Ratings on the Internet website commonly known as 
the ‘‘Hospital Compare’’ website on a date that is before 
the date of the enactment of this act, the Secretary shall 
apply subsection (a) by— 
(1) removing such Ratings from such Internet 
website as soon as is practicable; and 
(2) in accordance with subsection (a)(4), not re-
publishing after the date of the enactment of this 
Act any such Ratings on such Internet website or 
otherwise so making any such Ratings publicly avail-
able on a date that is before the latest of the dates 
described in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of 
such subsection. 
Æ 
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