Title: Rural HELP Act of 2022
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Rural Hospital Extensions for Low-volume Programs Act of 2022 or the Rural HELP Act of 2022
This bill makes certain payment adjustments for Medicare-dependent hospitals and low-volume hospitals permanent (the adjustments currently expire at the end of FY2022).

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8565 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8565

 To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permanently extend 
the Medicare-dependent hospital and low-volume hospital programs under 
                         the Medicare program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 28, 2022

    Mr. Graves of Missouri introduced the following bill; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permanently extend 
the Medicare-dependent hospital and low-volume hospital programs 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 ``Rural Hospital Extensions for Low-
volume Programs Act of 2022'' or the ``Rural HELP Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. PERMANENTLY EXTENDING THE MEDICARE-DEPENDENT HOSPITAL AND LOW-
              VOLUME HOSPITAL PROGRAMS UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.

    (a) Extension of the Medicare-Dependent Hospital (MDH) Program.--
            (1) Extension of payment methodology.--Section 
        1886(d)(5)(G) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1395ww(d)(5)(G)) is amended--
                    (A) in clause (i), by striking ``, and before 
                October 1, 2022''; and
                    (B) in clause (ii)(II), by striking ``, and before 
                October 1, 2022''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--
                    (A) Extension of target amount.--Section 
                1886(b)(3)(D) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
                1395ww(b)(3)(D)) is amended--
                            (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
                        striking ``, and before October 1, 2022''; and
                            (ii) in clause (iv), by striking ``through 
                        fiscal year 2022'' and inserting ``or a 
                        subsequent fiscal year''.
                    (B) Permitting hospitals to decline 
                reclassification.--Section 13501(e)(2) of the Omnibus 
                Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww 
                note) is amended by striking ``fiscal year 2000 through 
                fiscal year 2022'' and inserting ``a subsequent fiscal 
                year''.
    (b) Extension of the Increased Payments Under the Medicare Low-
Volume Hospital Program.--Section 1886(d)(12) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(12)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B)--
                    (A) in the header, by inserting ``for fiscal years 
                2005 through 2010'' after ``increase''; and
                    (B) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking 
                ``and for discharges occurring in fiscal year 2023 and 
                subsequent fiscal years'';
            (2) in subparagraph (C)(i)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding subclause (I), by 
                striking ``through 2022'' and inserting ``and each 
                subsequent fiscal year'';
                    (B) in subclause (II), by adding at the end 
                ``and'';
                    (C) in subclause (III)--
                            (i) by striking ``fiscal years 2019 through 
                        2022'' and inserting ``fiscal year 2019 and 
                        each subsequent fiscal year''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
                        period; and
                    (D) by striking subclause (IV); and
            (3) in subparagraph (D)--
                    (A) by amending the header to read as follows: 
                ``Applicable percentage increase beginning with fiscal 
                year 2021'';
                    (B) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking 
                ``fiscal years 2011 through 2022'' and inserting 
                ``fiscal year 2019 and each subsequent fiscal year''; 
                and
                    (C) in clause (ii), by striking ``each of fiscal 
                years 2019 through 2022'' and inserting ``fiscal year 
                2019 and each subsequent fiscal year''.
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