Title: Rapid Coverage for Coronavirus Vaccines Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Rapid Coverage for Coronavirus Vaccines Act
This bill shortens the time frame under which private health insurance plans must cover certain new preventative services related to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Under current law, health plans have one year to cover services recommended by the United States Preventive Services Task Force or the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Under this bill, health plans must cover such services to prevent or diagnose COVID-19 within 15 days.


[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3505 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3505

To require private health insurers to rapidly cover preventive services 
                and vaccines related to the coronavirus.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 17, 2020

    Mr. Jones (for himself, Mr. Cassidy, Ms. Smith, and Mr. Daines) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require private health insurers to rapidly cover preventive services 
                and vaccines related to the coronavirus.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rapid Coverage for Coronavirus 
Vaccines Act''.

SEC. 2. RAPID COVERAGE OF PREVENTIVE SERVICES AND VACCINES FOR 
              CORONAVIRUS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding 2713(b) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-13), the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall require group health plans and health insurance issuers offering 
group or individual health insurance to cover any qualifying 
coronavirus preventive service, pursuant to section 2713(a) of the 
Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-13(a)). The requirement 
described in this subsection shall take effective with respect to a 
qualifying coronavirus prevention service on the specified date 
described in subsection (b)(2).
    (b) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) Qualifying coronavirus preventive service.--The term 
        ``qualifying coronavirus preventive service'' means an item, 
        service, or immunization that is intended to prevent or 
        mitigate coronavirus disease 2019 and that is--
                    (A) an evidence-based item or service that has in 
                effect a rating of ``A'' or ``B'' in the current 
                recommendations of the United States Preventive 
                Services Task Force; or
                    (B) an immunization that has in effect a 
                recommendation from the Advisory Committee on 
                Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease 
                Control and Prevention with respect to the individual 
                involved.
            (2) Specified date.--The term ``specified date'' means--
                    (A) with respect to a qualifying coronavirus 
                preventive service described in paragraph (1)(A), the 
                date that is 15 business days after the date on which a 
                rating with respect to such item or service is received 
                as described in such paragraph; or
                    (B) with respect to a qualifying coronavirus 
                preventive service described in paragraph (1)(B), the 
                date that is 15 business days after the date on which a 
                recommendation is made relating to the immunization as 
                described in such paragraph.
            (3) Health insurance terms.--In this section, the terms 
        ``group health plan'', ``health insurance issuer'', ``group 
        health insurance coverage'', and ``individual health insurance 
        coverage'' have the meanings given such terms in section 2791 
        of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-91).
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