Title: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allow delivery of medical supplies by unmanned aerial systems, and for other purposes.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This bill prohibits the Department of Health and Human Services from blocking any program administered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services or the Indian Health Service that reimburses medical providers for the use of unmanned aerial systems that deliver medical supplies. Additionally, the Federal Aviation Administration may not prohibit the operation of such systems beyond the line of sight.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7395 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7395

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allow delivery 
of medical supplies by unmanned aerial systems, and for other purposes.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 21, 2018

 Mr. Meadows introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
    Committees on Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, and Natural 
 Resources, 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 direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allow delivery 
of medical supplies by unmanned aerial systems, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON THE MEDICAL POTENTIAL OF UNMANNED 
              AERIAL SYSTEMS.

    It is the sense of Congress that unmanned aerial systems have the 
potential to improve medical care for rural populations and for 
patients in acute situations in need of immediate care and without 
immediate access to care providers, and that such technologies should 
be utilized where practicable.

SEC. 2. CONFIRMATION OF MEDICARE REIMBURSEMENT ELIGIBILITY.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall not prohibit any 
program administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services 
or the Indian Health Service from reimbursing hospitals or other 
medical providers for the use of unmanned aerial systems for delivery 
of medical supplies to hospitals, ambulances, or directly to sites of 
medical emergencies occurring away from hospitals and ambulances.

SEC. 3. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION AND FLIGHT OF UNMANNED AERIAL 
              SYSTEMS BEYOND LINE OF SIGHT FOR MEDICAL PURPOSES.

    The Federal Aviation Administration, in issuing rulemaking for 
unmanned aerial system delivery as directed by section 44808 of title 
49, United States Code, shall not prohibit the operation of unmanned 
aerial systems for medical purposes beyond the line of sight, 
consistent with other rules and regulations made applicable to all 
unmanned aerial systems in such rulemaking.
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