Title: HARMON Oklahoma Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Helping Account for Rural Medical Outpatient Needs in Oklahoma Act or the HARMON Oklahoma Act
This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to continue to allow Harmon Memorial Hospital in Hollis, Oklahoma, to retain its designation as a critical access hospital and to seek designation as a rural emergency hospital under Medicare after the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, as specified in a prior letter sent to the hospital. The bill also requires the CMS to issue final regulations implementing the newly created Medicare rural emergency hospital program by November 1, 2022.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5753 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5753

 To assist in the transition of a certain hospital to a Medicare rural 
              emergency hospital, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 27, 2021

  Mr. Lucas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy 
    and Commerce, 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 assist in the transition of a certain hospital to a Medicare rural 
              emergency hospital, 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 ``Helping Account for Rural Medical 
Outpatient Needs in Oklahoma Act'' or the ``HARMON Oklahoma Act''.

SEC. 2. ASSISTANCE IN THE TRANSITION OF A CERTAIN HOSPITAL TO A 
              MEDICARE RURAL EMERGENCY HOSPITAL.

    (a) Special Rule.--In the case of a critical access hospital (as 
defined in section 1861(mm) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395x(mm)) with a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 
certification number of 371338, the following shall apply:
            (1) Pursuant to the June 11, 2021, Centers for Medicare & 
        Medicaid Services letter sent to the critical access hospital--
                    (A) the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
                (referred to in this section as the ``Secretary'') 
                shall suspend the running of the twenty-four month 
                extension mentioned in the October 15, 2019, letter to 
                the hospital during the COVID-19 public health 
                emergency; and
                    (B) the hospital shall have 19.7 months after the 
                end of the COVID-19 public health emergency to notify 
                the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the 
                hospital's intent to either convert to an acute care 
                hospital, transition to a rural emergency hospital 
                under section 1861(kkk) of the Social Security Act (42 
                U.S.C. 1395x(kkk)) (if the hospital qualifies as such), 
                or terminate as a critical access hospital.
            (2) Prior to the end of the 19.7 months described in 
        paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall not take an adverse 
        redesignation action with respect to the critical access 
        hospital status of the hospital as long as the hospital 
        continues to meet all of the requirements for designation as a 
        critical access hospital other than the distance requirement 
        under section 1820(c)(2)(B)(i) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i-
        4(c)(2)(B)(i)).
            (3) If, prior to the end of the 19.7 months described in 
        paragraph (1)(B), the critical access hospital notifies the 
        Secretary of the hospital's intention to transition to a rural 
        emergency hospital, the Secretary--
                    (A) shall give priority to the processing of the 
                request for such transition; and
                    (B) shall not take an adverse redesignation action 
                with respect to the critical access hospital status of 
                the hospital prior to the later of--
                            (i) the end of the 19.7 months described in 
                        paragraph (1)(B); or
                            (ii) the date the Secretary makes a final 
                        determination with respect to such request.
    (b) Timeline for Regulations.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall--
                    (A) not later than July 1, 2022, promulgate a 
                proposed rule to carry out the provisions of, and 
                amendments made by, section 125 of division CC of the 
                Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-
                260); and
                    (B) not later than November 1, 2022, promulgate a 
                final rule to carry out such provisions and amendments.
            (2) Additional information.--The Secretary shall ensure 
        that the proposed and final rules required under paragraph (1) 
        contain a description of the additional information that will 
        be required under section 1861(kkk)(4) of the Social Security 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(kkk)(4)).
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