Protecting Beneficiary Access to Complex Rehab Technology Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-486
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Casey, Robert P., Jr. [D-PA]
Introduced: 2017-03-01
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Health technology, devices, supplies

Long-term, rehabilitative, and terminal care

Medicare
Latest action: action_date: 2017-03-01
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Summaries:
action_date: 2017-03-01
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><strong>Protecting Beneficiary Access to Complex Rehab Technology Act of 2017</strong></p> <p>This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the application of Medicare competitive acquisition rates to complex rehabilitative wheelchairs and accessories.&nbsp;(A competitive bidding program has replaced the use of&nbsp;established fee schedule&nbsp;amounts to determine payments under Medicare for certain durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs.)</p>

tv_txt: II 115th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 486 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 1, 2017 Mr. Casey (for himself, Mr. Portman , Mr. Coons , Mr. Gardner , Mr. Brown , Mr. Roberts , Ms. Stabenow , Mrs. Capito , Mrs. Gillibrand , and Mr. Blunt ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the non-application of Medicare competitive acquisition rates to complex rehabilitative wheelchairs and accessories.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protecting Beneficiary Access to Complex Rehab Technology Act of 2017 . 2. Clarifying non-application of Medicare competitive acquisition rates to complex rehabilitative wheelchairs and accessories Section 1834(a)(1)(F) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395m(a)(1)(F) ) is amended— (1) in clause (ii), by striking at the end and ; (2) in clause (iii), by striking at the end the period and inserting ; and ; and (3) by adding at the end the following new clause: (iv) in the case of covered items furnished on or after July 1, 2017, the Secretary shall not apply this subparagraph or any other provision of this title to use information from the competitive acquisition program to determine payment amounts for items excluded from such competitive acquisition program, including all complex rehabilitative manual and power wheelchairs classified by the Secretary as of January 1, 2015, and, without limitation, any wheelchair accessory, cushion, or back when furnished in connection with a complex rehabilitative manual or power wheelchair. .