Title: SMART Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Stabilizing Medicare Access to Rehabilitation and Therapy Act or the SMART Act
This bill modifies the application of a certain Medicare payment methodology for outpatient physical therapy services and outpatient occupational therapy services that are furnished by a therapy assistant.
Under current law, effective January 1, 2022, payment for such services is 85% of the otherwise applicable rate. The bill delays this effective date by one year and excludes services that are furnished in rural or medically underserved areas from this payment methodology.
The bill also specifies that supervision requirements for outpatient physical therapy services that are furnished through private practice may not be more stringent for purposes of Medicare coverage than under state law.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5536 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5536

   To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to revise certain 
     payment rules for outpatient physical therapy and outpatient 
occupational therapy furnished in rural areas and medically underserved 
                     areas, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 8, 2021

    Mr. Rush (for himself and Mr. Smith of Missouri) 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 amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to revise certain 
     payment rules for outpatient physical therapy and outpatient 
occupational therapy furnished in rural areas and medically underserved 
                     areas, 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 ``Stabilizing Medicare Access to 
Rehabilitation and Therapy Act'' or the ``SMART Act''.

SEC. 2. REVISIONS TO OUTPATIENT PHYSICAL THERAPY AND OUTPATIENT 
              OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY.

    (a) Preclusion of Application to Services Furnished in Rural Areas 
and Medically Underserved Areas.--Section 1834(v)(1) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(v)(1)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``January 1, 2022'' and inserting ``January 
        1, 2023''; and
            (2) by inserting ``apply to services furnished in a rural 
        area (as defined in section 1886(d)(2)(D) or a medically 
        underserved area (as designated pursuant to section 
        330(b)(3)(A) of the Public Health Service Act) or'' before 
        ``change applicable requirements''.
    (b) Limitation of Supervision Requirements.--Section 1861(p) of the 
Social Security Act, in the first sentence of the flush left matter at 
the end, is amended by inserting ``, but in no case may those 
conditions impose a supervision requirement that exceed any such 
requirement under State law'' after ``as the Secretary may find 
necessary''.
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