Title: Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services developing a mobility metric to guide providers in preventing mobility loss among hospitalized older adults.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This resolution expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services should develop quality measures to prevent mobility loss among hospitalized patients.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1177 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1177

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the 
 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services developing a mobility metric 
to guide providers in preventing mobility loss among hospitalized older 
                                adults.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 15, 2022

    Mr. Pence (for himself and Ms. Sewell) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the 
 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services developing a mobility metric 
to guide providers in preventing mobility loss among hospitalized older 
                                adults.

Whereas more than 54 million Americans today are 65 years old or older, and 
        because 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 years old each day, the 
        overall number of older adults is expected to increase to more than 70 
        million by 2030;
Whereas, even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, one-third of all 
        hospitalized patients in the United States were at least 65 years old;
Whereas hospitalized older patients are mostly immobile during their admittance, 
        spending less than 43 minutes each day walking even if they were 
        ambulatory when admitted to the hospital;
Whereas hospitalized older patients that do not receive sufficient mobility are 
        at the greatest risk of experiencing negative health outcomes, such as 
        sustaining muscle loss and weakness that could be long lasting, and even 
        higher rates of death;
Whereas restoring mobility is a goal for many, not necessarily all, hospitalized 
        patients;
Whereas more than one-third of adults aged 70 years old and older are discharged 
        from a hospital with a major, new functional disability not present on 
        admission to the hospital;
Whereas one year after discharge from a hospital, fewer than one-third of older 
        adults who developed a hospital-acquired functional disability have 
        recovered to their pre-hospitalization function status;
Whereas adults with a hospital-associated disability are three times more likely 
        to be admitted to a nursing home;
Whereas regular physical mobility during hospitalization is critical to 
        preventing functional decline and frailty;
Whereas mobility initiatives decrease hospital length of stay and overall cost 
        of care, such as a 36-percent reduction in intensive care unit length of 
        stay, a 33-percent reduction in overall hospital length of stay, a 46-
        percent reduction in the number of days on a ventilator, and a 30-
        percent reduction in overall hospital costs;
Whereas mobility programs in acute care settings improve the likelihood that 
        patients are discharged directly to their homes and bypass a skilled 
        nursing facility;
Whereas hospitals, physicians, and nurses are committed to delivering the best 
        care for patients, but there are not current standardized methods of 
        assessing or tracking patient mobility within hospitals, nor are there 
        standardized systems to measure adherence to individual hospital 
        mobility protocols;
Whereas current hospital reimbursement incentives designed to prevent patient 
        ``falls'' unintentionally disincentive hospitals from mobilizing 
        patients;
Whereas prolonged periods of bed rest for older adults can cause loss of 
        skeletal muscle, known as sarcopenia, reducing a person's ability to 
        carry out activities of daily living; and
Whereas the American Geriatrics Society made a series of mobility 
        recommendations developed by geriatric leaders, physicians, and 
        clinicians, such as that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 
        should develop consensus on standard methods to assess mobility and that 
        the Federal Government should prioritize translational research in 
        mobility assessment, quality measurement, and implementation programs 
        led by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the National 
        Institutes of Health and National Institute on Aging, the Centers for 
        Disease Control and Prevention, and the Administration on Aging: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services should--
            (1) promote the development of stakeholder consensus on a 
        mobility assessment that is validated and clinically meaningful 
        to providers and patients;
            (2) develop a mobility quality measure that incentives 
        hospitals, staff, and providers to actively intervene to 
        prevent mobility loss among hospitalized patients; and
            (3) develop a mobility quality measure that focuses on the 
        most effective improvements in patient outcomes and takes into 
        consideration avoiding additional onerous burdens on providers.
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