Protecting Rural Access to Care Act

Bill: 117-hr-489
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Stefanik, Elise M. [R-NY-21]
Introduced: 2021-01-25
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Department of Health and Human Services

Health care coverage and access

Health facilities and institutions

Hospital care

Medicare

Public participation and lobbying

Roads and highways

Rural conditions and development
Latest action: action_date: 2021-01-28
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-01-25
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Protecting Rural Access to Care Act</b></p> <p>This bill limits the scope of guidance issued by the Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the secondary road criteria for Medicare critical access hospitals (CAHs).</p> <p>Currently, in order to qualify as a CAH under Medicare, a hospital must either (1) be located more than 35 miles (15 miles in mountainous regions or areas with only secondary roads) from another hospital, or (2) have been certified prior to January 1, 2006, by the state as a necessary provider of services in the area. </p> <p>The CMS issued guidance on July 31, 2015, that provided more detail as to the differences between primary and secondary roads for purposes of CAH certification. The bill specifies that this guidance does not apply to CAHs that were certified prior to July 31, 2015, and that these CAHs are instead subject to the standards that were in place before the guidance was issued. Ongoing CAH certifications are also subject to pre-guidance standards until the CMS issues new guidance after a specified public comment period.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 489 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 25, 2021 Ms. Stefanik (for herself and Mr. Delgado ) 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 clarify the application of the 15-mile secondary road distance requirement with respect to previously designated critical access hospitals under the Medicare program.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protecting Rural Access to Care Act . 2. Clarifying the application of the 15-mile secondary road distance requirement with respect to previously designated critical access hospitals Section 1820(h) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395i–4(h) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (4) Application of 15-mile secondary roads criteria In the case of a facility that was designated as a critical access hospital before July 31, 2015, in applying the criteria for such designation specified in clause (i) of subsection (c)(2)(B), a State (and the Secretary) shall so apply such criteria, insofar as such criteria relates to a facility located in an area with only secondary roads available, using such guidance and regulations as were in effect on July 30, 2015. . 3. Requirement for public notice and comment period for any guidance or regulation relating to designation criteria for critical access hospitals (a) In general With respect to any guidance or regulation issued by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this section referred to as the Secretary ) on or after the date of the enactment of this Act relating to the criteria for designation of a facility as a critical access hospital (as specified in section 1820(c)(2)(B) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395i–4(c)(2)(B) )), such guidance or regulation shall not take effect prior to the expiration of a notice and comment period of not less than 60 days under which the public is given the opportunity to comment on such guidance or regulation and the Secretary evaluates any such comments. (b) Retroactive application to guidance relating to application of the 15-Mile secondary road distance requirement In applying the criteria described in subsection (a), a State (and the Secretary) shall so apply such criteria, insofar as such criteria relates to a facility located in an area with only secondary roads available, using such guidance and regulations as were in effect on July 30, 2015, until, subject to paragraph (4) of section 1820(h) of the Social Security Act (as added by section 2), such time as the Secretary issues guidance or regulations in accordance with such subsection.