Title: LAB Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Laboratory Access for Beneficiaries Act or the LAB Act
This bill revises the periods during which laboratories must report clinical diagnostic test information to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for purposes of determining Medicare payment rates. Additionally, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission must evaluate the methodology used to determine a specified laboratory fee schedule.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3049 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 3049

To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for certain 
amendments relating to reporting requirements with respect to clinical 
          diagnostic laboratory tests, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 12, 2019

  Mr. Brown (for himself and Mr. Burr) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for certain 
amendments relating to reporting requirements with respect to clinical 
          diagnostic laboratory tests, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Laboratory Access for Beneficiaries 
Act'' or the ``LAB Act''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO REPORTING REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO 
              CLINICAL DIAGNOSTIC LABORATORY TESTS.

    (a) Revised Reporting Period for Reporting of Private Sector 
Payment Rates for Establishment of Medicare Payment Rates.--Section 
1834A(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m-1(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking ``Beginning January 1, 2016'' and 
                inserting the following:
                    ``(A) General reporting requirements.--Subject to 
                subparagraph (B), beginning January 1, 2016'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (A), as added by subparagraph 
                (A) of this paragraph, by inserting ``(referred to in 
                this subsection as the `reporting period')'' after ``at 
                a time specified by the Secretary''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Revised reporting period.--In the case of 
                reporting with respect to clinical diagnostic 
                laboratory tests that are not advanced diagnostic 
                laboratory tests, the Secretary shall revise the 
                reporting period under subparagraph (A) such that--
                            ``(i) no reporting is required during the 
                        period beginning January 1, 2020, and ending 
                        December 31, 2020;
                            ``(ii) reporting is required during the 
                        period beginning January 1, 2021, and ending 
                        March 31, 2021; and
                            ``(iii) reporting is required every three 
                        years after the period described in clause 
                        (ii).''; and
            (2) in paragraph (4)--
                    (A) by striking ``In this section'' and inserting 
                the following:
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), in 
                this section''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Exception.--In the case of the reporting 
                period described in paragraph (1)(B)(ii) with respect 
                to clinical diagnostic laboratory tests that are not 
                advanced diagnostic laboratory tests, the term `data 
                collection period' means the period beginning January 
                1, 2019, and ending June 30, 2019.''.
    (b) Corrections Relating to Phase-In of Reductions From Private 
Payor Rate Implementation.--Section 1834A(b)(3) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m-1(b)(3)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``through 2022'' and 
        inserting ``through 2023''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (B)--
                    (A) in clause (i), by striking ``through 2019'' and 
                inserting ``through 2020''; and
                    (B) in clause (ii), by striking ``2020 through 
                2022'' and inserting ``2021 through 2023''.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORT BY MEDPAC.

    (a) In General.--The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (in this 
section referred to as the ``Commission'') shall conduct a study to 
review the methodology the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & 
Medicaid Services has implemented for the private payor rate-based 
clinical laboratory fee schedule under the Medicare program under title 
XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.).
    (b) Scope of Study.--In carrying out the study described in 
subsection (a), the Commission shall consider the following:
            (1) How best to implement the least burdensome data 
        collection process required under section 1834A(a)(1) of such 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m-1(a)(1)) that would--
                    (A) result in a representative and statistically 
                valid data sample of private market rates from all 
                laboratory market segments, including hospital outreach 
                laboratories, physician office laboratories, and 
                independent laboratories; and
                    (B) consider the variability of private payor 
                payment rates across market segments and laboratory 
                setttings.
            (2) Appropriate statistical methods for estimating rates 
        that are representative of the market.
    (c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall submit to the 
Administrator, the Committee on Finance of the Senate, and the 
Committees on Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce of the House of 
Representatives a report that includes--
            (1) conclusions about the methodology described in such 
        subsection; and
            (2) any recommendations the Commission deems appropriate.
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