Patients Before Profits Act of 2006

Bill: 109-hr-4719
Sponsor: Rep. Dingell, John D. [D-MI-15]
Introduced: 2006-02-08 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Coinsurance
Commerce
Drugs
Economics and Public Finance
Emergency Management
Emergency medicine
Finance and Financial Sector
Government trust funds
Health insurance
Health maintenance organizations
Hospital care
Hospital rates
Insurance premiums
Managed care
Medicaid
Medical economics
Medical fees
Medical savings accounts
Medicare
Prescription pricing
Social Welfare
Subsidies

Summary:
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: 
Patients Before Profits Act of 2006 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA), as amended by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, with respect to the health status adjustment to certain monthly payments to Medicare+Choice organizations. Repeals the limitation to 2008, 2009, and 2010 of the requirement that, in applying such adjustment to payment amounts, the Secretary of Health and Human Services ensure that it reflects changes in treatment and coding practices in the fee-for-service sector, and reflects any differences in coding patterns between Medicare Advantage (MA) plans and Medicare providers under parts A and B. Requires the Secretary's analysis of such differences to be completed in time to ensure that the results are incorporated into the risk scores for 2008 and subsequent years (currently, only the risk scores for 2008, 2009, and 2010).
 
Amends SSA title XVIII to repeal the requirement that the Secretary establish an MA Regional Plan Stabilization Fund.
 
Amends SSA title XVIII, as amended by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, to repeal: (1) the state option for alternative premiums and cost sharing; (2) certain special rules for cost sharing for prescription drugs; (3) a state option for permitting hospitals to impose cost sharing for non-emergency care furnished in an emergency department; (2) the state option to provide benchmark benefit packages; and (3) the authority and mandate to establish Health Opportunity Accounts demonstrations.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2006-02-17
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: 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.
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: 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.
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: 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.
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E117)
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2006-02-08
text: Introduced in House