expenditures in the Medicare program due to physicians’ 
services that resulted in hospital or in-patient diversion. 
(b) REPORT.—The Secretary shall transmit to Con-
gress annually a summary of the data collected under sub-
section (a). 
SEC. 304. TRUSTEES’ ONGOING EXAMINATION OF MEDI-
CARE FUNDING. 
(a) EXAMINATION BY BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—The 
Board of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance 
Trust Fund and of the Federal Supplementary Medical 
Insurance Trust Fund shall monitor and examine the ex-
tent to which the different funding mechanisms under 
parts A, B, and D of title XVIII of the Social Security 
Act provide an appropriate alignment with the program 
goals of the respective parts. Such examination shall in-
clude an examination of each of the following: 
(1) The extent to which, as volume of services 
increases in physician settings under such part B, 
there is a corresponding reduction in similar services 
provided in a hospital setting under such part A. 
(2) The extent to which, as a result of increased 
coordination between physicians and the delivery of 
prescription drugs under such part D, particularly 
with respect to individuals with chronic conditions, 
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there will there be a decrease in hospitalizations 
under such part A. 
(3) The extent to which other changes in physi-
cian or other health care practice results in a shift-
ing of expenditures among the various parts. 
(b) INCLUSION IN ANNUAL REPORTS.—In each an-
nual report submitted to the Congress after the date of 
the enactment of this Act under section 1817(b)(2) or sec-
tion 1841(b)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395i(b)(2), 1395t(b)(2)), such Board of Trustees shall 
include information on the matters described in subsection 
(a). 
SEC. 305. INDEPENDENT STUDY ON MEDICARE RELATIVE 
VALUE UNIT SCALE UPDATE COMMITTEE 
(RUC) PROCESS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services shall enter into an arrangement with an 
appropriate independent entity to conduct a study of price 
inputs and relative values for physicians’ services rec-
ommended by the AMA/Specialty Society Relative Value 
Unit Scale Update Committee (RUC) process. The study 
shall examine (and make recommendations on) how to im-
prove accuracy in pricing the mix of physicians’ services 
and such process could improve value weighting as new 
services become available. 
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(b) REPORT.—The Secretary shall provide for com-
pletion of the study under subsection (a) by January 1, 
2010, and shall provide for a report to Congress on the 
results of the study. 
SEC. 306. STUDY OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS ON 
HEALTH CARE DISPARITIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services shall provide for a study of health care 
disparities in high-risk health condition areas and minor-
ity communities about the impact reporting requirements 
may have on physician penetration in such communities. 
(b) REPORT.—The Secretary shall provide for the 
completion of the study by not later than January 1, 2011, 
and shall submit to Congress a report on the study upon 
its completion. 
TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS 
PROVISIONS 
SEC. 401. ACCELERATION OF NATIONWIDE IMPLEMENTA-
TION OF AUDIT CONTRACTOR PROGRAM. 
Section 1893(h)(3) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395ddd(h)(3)), as added by section 302(a) of the 
Medicare Improvements and Extension Act of 2006 (divi-
sion B of Public Law 109–432), is amended by striking 
‘‘January 1, 2010’’ and inserting ‘‘January 1, 2008’’. 
Æ 
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