To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to apply budget neutrality on a State-specific basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor for non-rural areas.

Bill: 113-hr-2053
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Brady, Kevin [R-TX-8]
Introduced: 2013-05-20
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Health facilities and institutions

Health personnel

Hospital care

Medicare

Wages and earnings
Latest action: action_date: 2013-06-03
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Summaries:
action_date: 2013-05-20
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>Revises requirements for the non-rural area wage index floor in the formula for the national adjusted diagnosis-related group (DRG) prospective payment rate used in calculating payments under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act for each inpatient hospital discharge in a fiscal year involving inpatient hospital services of a subsection (d) hospital.</p> <p>(Generally, a subsection [d] hospital is an acute care hospital, particularly one that receives payments under Medicare's inpatient prospective payment system [IPPS] when providing covered inpatient services to eligible beneficiaries.)</p> <p>Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), in the case of discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2013, to apply budget neutrality, under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and related regulations, on a state-specific rather than national basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor, including a minimum wage index, for each non-rural area, using a specified methodology as if it had been fully implemented for FY2011 using a 100% state-specific adjustment to the area wage index.</p> <p>Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed as preventing the Secretary, for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2014, from modifying related regulations in carrying out budget neutrality requirements.</p> <p>Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to end the application of budget neutrality on a national basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor as of October 1, 2013.</p>

tv_txt: I 113th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 2053 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 20, 2013 Mr. Brady of Texas (for himself, Mr. Reed , Mr. Tiberi , Mr. Roskam , Mr. Buchanan , Mr. Schock , Mr. Kelly of Pennsylvania , Mr. Renacci , and Mr. Griffith of Virginia ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means A BILL To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to apply budget neutrality on a State-specific basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor for non-rural areas.

1. Applying budget neutrality on a State-specific basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor for non-rural areas (a) In general Section 1886(d)(3)(E) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(3)(E) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new clause: (iv) Application of budget neutrality relating to floor on wage area index in non-rural areas (I) Application on a State-specific basis beginning in fiscal year 2014 Subject to subclause (II), in the case of discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2013, for purposes of applying section 4410(b) of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the Secretary shall administer such section 4410(b) and paragraph (e) of section 412.64 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, as if paragraph (e)(4)(ii) of such section 412.64 had never applied and by using the methodology promulgated in the Federal Register on August 19, 2008 (73 Fed. Reg. 48570) (applied as if such methodology had been fully implemented for fiscal year 2011 using a 100 percent State-specific adjustment to the area wage index). (II) Construction Nothing in subclause (I) shall be construed as preventing the Secretary, for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2014, from modifying the regulations under such section 412.64 in carrying out the budget neutrality requirements of such section 4410(b). . (b) Conforming amendment terminating application of budget neutrality on a nationwide basis Section 3141 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395ww note) is amended by inserting and before October 1, 2013, after 2010, .