Title: Better Health Care Directories Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Better Health Care Directories Act
This bill requires health insurance plans to include additional information in their provider directories, such as whether a provider is accepting new patients.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8885 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8885

To amend the Public Health Service Act, Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
  and Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to provide for 
 provider directory improvements to enhance enrollee, participant, and 
                      beneficiary access to care.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 19, 2022

  Mr. Kildee (for himself, Mr. Wenstrup, and Mr. Hern) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
  Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and 
Education and Labor, 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 amend the Public Health Service Act, Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
  and Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to provide for 
 provider directory improvements to enhance enrollee, participant, and 
                      beneficiary access to care.

    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 Health Care Directories 
Act''.

SEC. 2. PROVIDER DIRECTORY IMPROVEMENTS TO ENHANCE ENROLLEE, 
              PARTICIPANT, AND BENEFICIARY ACCESS.

    (a) Provider Directory Information To Include if Provider Is 
Accepting New Patients.--
            (1) Group health plan and health insurance issuer 
        requirement.--
                    (A) PHSA.--Section 2799A-5(a)(6) of the Public 
                Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-115(a)(6)) is 
                amended by inserting before the period at the end the 
                following: ``as well as information (which shall be 
                updated at least annually) furnished to the plan by 
                such provider or facility on whether such provider or 
                facility is accepting new patients and, if so, if an 
                in-person appointment or telehealth appointment (or 
                either) is available for such patients''.
                    (B) IRC.--Section 9820(a)(6) of the Internal 
                Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting before the 
                period at the end the following: ``as well as 
                information (which shall be updated at least annually) 
                furnished to the plan by such provider or facility on 
                whether such provider or facility is accepting new 
                patients and, if so, if an in-person appointment or 
                telehealth appointment (or either) is available for 
                such patients''.
                    (C) ERISA.--Section 720(a)(6) of the Employee 
                Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 
                1185i(a)(6)) is amended by inserting before the period 
                at the end the following: ``as well as information 
                (which shall be updated at least annually) furnished to 
                the plan by such provider or facility on whether such 
                provider or facility is accepting new patients and, if 
                so, if an in-person appointment or telehealth 
                appointment (or either) is available for such 
                patients''.
            (2) Provider requirement.--Section 2799B-9(d) of the Public 
        Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-139(d)) is amended by 
        inserting before the period at the end the following: ``as well 
        as information (which shall be updated at least annually) on 
        whether such provider or facility is accepting new patients 
        and, if so, if an in-person appointment or telehealth 
        appointment (or either) is available for such patients''.
            (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by this section 
        shall apply for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 
        2025.
    (b) Machine Readable Format and Public Posting.--
            (1) PHSA.--Section 2799A-5(a) of the Public Health Service 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-115(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking at the 
                        end ``and'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking at 
                        the end the period and adding ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new subparagraph:
                    ``(E) for plan years beginning on or after January 
                1, 2025, annually submit the provider directory 
                information under paragraph (6), with respect to such 
                plan or coverage, to the Secretary in a machine-
                readable file (as defined in section 147.210(a)(2)(xiv) 
                of title 45, Code of Federal Regulations, or any 
                successor regulation).''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(8) Public posting by secretary of provider 
        directories.--Beginning not later than July 1, 2025, the 
        Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Labor and the 
        Secretary of the Treasury, shall make the information submitted 
        pursuant to paragraph (1)(E) available on a public Federal 
        Government website.''.
            (2) IRC.--Section 9820(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
        1986 is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking at the 
                        end ``and'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking at 
                        the end the period and adding ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new subparagraph:
                    ``(E) for plan years beginning on or after January 
                1, 2025, annually submit the provider directory 
                information under paragraph (6), with respect to such 
                plan, to the Secretary in a machine-readable file (as 
                defined in section 54.9815-2715A1(a)(2)(xiv) of title 
                26, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 
                regulation).''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(8) Public posting by secretary of provider 
        directories.--Beginning not later than July 1, 2025, the 
        Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Labor and the 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall make the 
        information submitted pursuant to paragraph (1)(E) available on 
        a public Federal Government website.''.
            (3) ERISA.--Section 720(a) of the Employee Retirement 
        Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1185i(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking at the 
                        end ``and'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking at 
                        the end the period and adding ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new subparagraph:
                    ``(E) for plan years beginning on or after January 
                1, 2025, annually submit the provider directory 
                information under paragraph (6), with respect to such 
                plan or coverage, to the Secretary in a machine-
                readable file (as defined in section 2590.715-
                2715A1(a)(2)(xiii) of title 29, Code of Federal 
                Regulations, or any successor regulation).''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(8) Public posting by secretary of provider 
        directories.--Beginning not later than July 1, 2025, the 
        Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury 
        and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall make the 
        information submitted pursuant to paragraph (1)(E) available on 
        a public Federal Government website.''.
    (c) Implementation.--The Secretaries of Labor, Health and Human 
Services, and the Treasury may implement the provisions of, including 
the amendments made by, this section through interim final rule, sub-
regulatory guidance, program instruction, or otherwise.
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