Title: BREATHE Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Better Respiration through Expanding Access to Tele-Health Act or the BREATHE Act
This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to establish a pilot program in which qualifying respiratory therapists may provide telehealth services under Medicare. Specifically, the program must allow respiratory therapists to provide telehealth disease management services (e.g., smoking cessation counseling) for individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2508 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2508

  To provide for a pilot program to include respiratory therapists as 
          telehealth practitioners under the Medicare program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 2, 2019

  Mr. Thompson of California (for himself, Mr. Cox of California, Mr. 
   Carter of Georgia, and Mr. Kelly of Pennsylvania) 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 determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for a pilot program to include respiratory therapists as 
          telehealth practitioners under the Medicare program.

    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 ``Better Respiration through Expanding 
Access to Tele-Health Act'' or the ``BREATHE Act''.

SEC. 2. PILOT PROGRAM FOR INCLUDING RESPIRATORY THERAPISTS AS 
              TELEHEALTH PRACTITIONERS UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Beginning not later than 6 months after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services shall establish a 3-year pilot program under title XVIII of 
the Social Security Act with respect to furnishing telehealth disease 
management services to eligible telehealth individuals who are 
diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for purposes of 
determining the value of including qualifying respiratory therapists as 
telehealth practitioners under the Medicare program to improve health 
outcomes for, reduce unnecessary emergency department visits and 
hospital admissions and readmissions of, and lower the cost of care 
provided to such individuals.
    (b) Telehealth Access.--Under the pilot program, coverage shall be 
provided under title XVIII of the Social Security Act for telehealth 
disease management services furnished to eligible telehealth 
individuals who are diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary 
disease by applying section 1834(m) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)), 
as if--
            (1) the reference in paragraph (1) of such section to ``a 
        practitioner (as described in section 1842(b)(18)(C))'' were a 
        reference to ``a practitioner (as defined in paragraph 
        (4)(E))'';
            (2) paragraph (2)(B) of such section does not apply to any 
        site that satisfies the definition of the term ``originating 
        site'' applied pursuant to paragraph (3) and that would not 
        otherwise be included as an originating site without 
        application of such paragraph;
            (3) the definition under paragraph (4)(C) of such section 
        for the term ``originating site'' included as a site described 
        in clause (ii) of such paragraph the place of residence of such 
        individual, regardless of whether such place of residence 
        satisfies the conditions described in subclause (I), (II), or 
        (III) of clause (i) of such paragraph; 
            (4) the definition in paragraph (4)(E) of such section for 
        the term ``practitioner'' included qualifying respiratory 
        therapists; and
            (5) the definition in paragraph (4)(F) of such section for 
        ``telehealth services'' included the following HCPCS codes 
        98960, 94664, 99406, 99407, and 99091.
    (c) Payment Modifier.--For purposes of the pilot program, the 
Secretary shall establish a payment modifier to ensure the collection 
of data relevant to telehealth disease management services furnished 
directly by a qualifying respiratory therapist to eligible telehealth 
individuals who are diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary 
disease.
    (d) Report.--Not later than one year after the last date of the 
pilot program, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall submit 
to Congress a report on the findings of the program, including if acute 
care interventions were reduced and the health status of eligible 
telehealth individuals who are diagnosed with chronic obstructive 
pulmonary disease was improved based on the lower utilization of 
services.
    (e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) The term ``eligible telehealth individual'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 1834(m)(4) of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)).
            (2) The term ``qualifying respiratory therapist'' means a 
        respiratory therapist who--
                    (A) is credentialed by a national credentialing 
                board recognized by the Secretary of Health and Human 
                Services;
                    (B) if applicable, is licensed in the State in 
                which the therapist furnishes the services involved;
                    (C) holds the credential of Registered Respiratory 
                Therapist; and
                    (D) has a minimum of a bachelor's degree or other 
                advanced degree in biological or health science.
            (3) The term ``telehealth disease management services'' 
        means any of the following disease management services 
        furnished via a telecommunications system by a qualifying 
        respiratory therapist:
                    (A) Self-management education and training.
                    (B) Demonstration and evaluation of inhaler 
                techniques.
                    (C) Smoking cessation counseling.
                    (D) Remote patient monitoring.
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