Rural Hospital Frontier Fairness Act

Bill: 116-hr-1323
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Peterson, Collin C. [D-MN-7]
Introduced: 2019-02-22
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Health care costs and insurance

Health facilities and institutions

Health personnel

Hospital care

Inflation and prices

Prescription drugs

Wages and earnings
Latest action: action_date: 2019-02-26
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Summaries:
action_date: 2019-02-22
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Rural Hospital Frontier Fairness Act</b></p> <p>This bill alters the Medicare prospective payment system for inpatient hospital services furnished at sole community hospitals (i.e., rural hospitals or hospitals that are the sole source of inpatient care in a certain geographic area). Specifically, the bill applies a minimum area wage adjustment to payments to sole community hospitals that are located up to 75 miles from the closest frontier (i.e., predominantly rural) state. Currently, the minimum area wage adjustment applies only to hospitals in frontier states.</p> <p>The bill also allows&nbsp;such sole community hospitals to&nbsp;participate in the 340B drug pricing program (i.e., a program that allows entities to receive covered outpatient drugs at reduced prices from manufacturers). </p>

tv_txt: I 116th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 1323 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES February 22, 2019 Mr. Peterson (for himself and Mr. Tipton ) introduced the following bill; which was 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 A BILL To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to extend the floor on the area wage index under the inpatient prospective payment system to certain sole community hospitals and to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide eligibility for certain sole community hospitals to discounted drug prices under the 340B drug pricing program.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Rural Hospital Frontier Fairness Act . 2. Extending floor on area wage index to certain sole community hospitals Section 1886(d)(3)(E)(iii) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(3)(E)(iii) ) is amended— (1) in subclause (I), by inserting before the period at the end the following: and, for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2019, the area wage index applicable under this subparagraph to any sole community hospital that is located not more than 75 miles from the closest frontier State and that makes an election under subclause (V) may not be less than 1.00 ; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subclause: (V) Sole community hospital election The Secretary shall provide for a process under which a sole community hospital described in subclause (I) may elect, at such time and in such manner as specified by the Secretary, to apply subclause (I) to such sole community hospital. . 3. Eligibility of certain sole community hospitals for discounted drug prices under the 340B drug pricing program (a) In general Section 340B(a)(4) of the Public Health Service Act ( 42 U.S.C. 256b(a)(4) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (P) An entity that is a sole community hospital (as defined in section 1886(d)(5)(C)(iii) of the Social Security Act), that was classified as such a hospital before October 1, 2015, and that is located not more than 75 miles from the closest frontier State (as defined in section 1886(d)(3)(E)(iii)(II) of such Act). . (b) Effective date (1) In general The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply to drugs purchased on or after the first day of the first month that begins more than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. (2) Conforming 340B agreements The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall provide for such timely modification of agreements entered into under section 340B of the Public Health Service Act ( 42 U.S.C. 256b ) as is necessary to provide for the application of the amendment made by subsection (a) on a timely basis consistent with paragraph (1).