zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Amends the Public Health Service Act to deem certain physicians or other licensed or certified health care practitioners to be employees of the Public Health Service for purposes of any civil action that may arise due to services provided in an emergency area by a contractor or an employee of a qualified health center. Provides that such services must be provided under an arrangement with a qualified health center or with a federal agency with responsibility for providing health services in the emergency area.

Date: 2007-02-07
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Access to Emergency Medical Services Act of 2007 - Establishes the United States Bipartisan Commission on Access to Emergency Medical Services to: (1) identify and examine factors in the health care delivery, financing, and legal systems that affect the effective delivery of screening and stabilization services furnished in hospitals that have emergency departments pursuant to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA); and (2) make specific recommendations to Congress with respect to federal programs, policies, and financing needed to assure the availability of such screening and stabilization services and the coordination of state, local, and federal programs for responding to disasters and emergencies. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for additional payments for certain physicians' emergency services furnished pursuant to EMTALA. Requires critical access hospitals with an emergency department to report annually to the Secretary of Health and Human Services information on the hospital's average admission period for the year. Requires the Secretary to post the reported information promptly on the official public Internet site of the Department of Health and Human Services. Directs the Secretary, based on the information reported for 2008, to develop an emergency department quality measure, if it is determined that one should be included in the performance measures hospitals are required to report.

Date: 2007-02-07
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Directs the Secretary of Defense to provide medical personnel of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) with access to all information provided in the Department of Defense (DOD) patient tracking and management system for the purpose of treating an individual at a VA medical facility for injuries sustained while serving in Operations Iraqi Freedom or Enduring Freedom.

Date: 2007-02-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Healthy Hospitals Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require public reporting of health care-associated infections data by hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a pilot program under Medicare to provide financial incentives or grants to hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers that demonstrate a satisfactory reduction in the rate of occurrence (or elimination) of health care-associated infections in the applicable hospital or ambulatory surgical center. Expresses the sense of Congress that health care providers and facilities should take measures to reduce the rate of occurrence of health care-associated infections to zero, with respect to patients to whom such providers and facilities furnish services.

Date: 2007-02-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Sole Community Hospital Preservation Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the prospective payment system (PPS) for hospital outpatient department (OPD) services, particularly the transitional adjustment for sole community hospitals to limit any decline in payment. Holds sole community hospitals permanently harmless from any decline in payment. Increases the payment for covered OPD services in a sole community hospital by the amount of any difference between the pre-Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (pre-BBA) amount and a lesser PPS amount.Specifies the rebasing of the payment-to-cost ratio for sole community hospitals for cost reporting periods beginning on or after October 1, 2007.

Date: 2007-02-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a major medical facility project for a replacement facility for the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Denver, Colorado.

Date: 2007-03-05
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
VA Hospital Quality Report Card Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish and implement a Hospital Quality Report Card Initiative to report on health care quality in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals. Requires the Secretary, at least semiannually, to publish reports on VA hospital quality, including assessments of effectiveness, safety, timeliness, and efficiency.

Date: 2007-03-09
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Senior Safety and Dignity Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) and title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to include in the nursing home patient's bill of rights the right to receive care from a creditable caregiver. Requires a skilled nursing facility (SNF), before hiring a worker, to conduct a background check on the applicant. Prohibits the hiring of abusive workers or workers convicted of a relevant crime. Establishes civil penalties for violations of this Act, including knowing retention of SNF workers who fail background checks. Applies such requirements and prohibitions to a long-term care facility or provider.Directs the Secretary to establish a national criminal background check program, after evaluation of the pilot program under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, in order to prevent abuse of nursing facility and SNF residents and individuals receiving home health care services and other long-term care services under the Medicare or Medicaid programs. Requires the Federal Bureau of Investigation to conduct such criminal background checks.Requires the national criminal background check program to be made available to a long-term care facility or provider.Adds to the nursing home patient's bill of rights the right to a safe environment during an emergency or natural disaster. Requires a SNF under Medicare and Medicaid to: (1) have a clear and preestablished disaster plan; and (2) inform residents and next-of-kin about it and the location of possible evacuation in case of an emergency disaster. Applies the same requirement to other long-term care facilities.

Date: 2007-03-12
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Health Care Price Transparency Promotion Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require state Medicaid plans to provide that the state will establish and maintain laws to require disclosure of information on hospital charges, to make such information available to the public, and to provide individuals with information about estimated out-of-pocket costs for health care services. Directs the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to research and report to Congress on: (1) the types of information on the charges and out-of-pocket costs for health care services that individuals find useful in making decisions about where, when, and from whom to receive care; (2) how such types of information vary by whether they have health benefits coverage, and what kinds; and (3) ways in which such information may be available on a timely basis and in easy-to-understand form to individuals facing such decisions.

Date: 2007-03-23
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to permit the designation of a certain critical access hospital in Cass County, Minnesota, by exempting it from the requirement that it be certified by the state on or after January 1, 2006, as being a necessary provider of health care services to residents in the area. (Thus restores to Minnesota state authority to waive the application of the 35-mile rule.)

Date: 2007-03-28
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Ambulatory Surgical Center Medicare Payment Modernization Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise the requirements and the formula for payments for services, including an implantable medical device, furnished to individuals in ambulatory surgical centers.

Date: 2007-03-29
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Jose Medina Veterans Affairs Police Training Act of 2007 - Expresses the sense of Congress that while the United States is conducting combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) should better prepare its police force to interact with patients and visitors at VA medical facilities who suffer from mental illness. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that all VA police officers receive training on such interaction.

Date: 2007-03-29
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Enhanced Options for Rural Health Care Act of 2007 - Amends part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide that nothing in such title shall be construed as preventing a critical access hospital from using any of its designated number of beds to provide assisted living or from accepting private payments for related services. Declares that such use shall not increase the total number of beds that the facility may have and maintain its designation as such a hospital.

Date: 2007-04-17
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Provides for the reclassification of Chautauqua County, New York, for purposes of payment for inpatient hospital services under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Deems the large urban area of Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York, to include Chautauqua County, effective for discharges occurring on or after September 30, 2007.

Date: 2007-04-23
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide that a facility located in a non-urbanized area so designated by the Bureau of the Census before January 1, 2000, that also satisfies all other applicable conditions, shall qualify as a rural health clinic for purposes of Medicare and SSA title XIX (Medicaid), whether or not such area remains so designated.

Date: 2007-05-03
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to criteria for designation of a critical access hospital under the Medicare rural hospital flexibility program, to reduce from 35 to 30 driving miles the distance such a facility must be from a hospital or another such facility.

Date: 2007-05-15
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Wakefield Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend by one year the length of time for which a grant may be awarded under the emergency medical services for children grant program, which allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to states or schools of medicine to support projects to expand and improve emergency medical services for children who need treatment for trauma or critical care. Reauthorizes appropriations for such grant program for FY2009-FY2013. Sets forth as the purpose of the program the reduction of child and youth morbidity and mortality by supporting improvements in the quality of all emergency medical care children receive. Requires the Secretary to support emergency medical services for children by supporting projects that: (1) develop and present scientific evidence; (2) promote existing innovative technologies appropriate for the care of children; and (3) provide information on health outcomes and effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. Directs that such program: (1) strive to enhance the pediatric capability of emergency medical service systems; and (2) be coordinated with all research, evaluations, and awards undertaken by the federal government related to emergency medical services for children.

Date: 2007-05-23
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Extends the minimum wage index established by regulation for each all-urban state under the inpatient hospital prospective payment system (PPS) under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act.

Date: 2007-06-13
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Veterans' Epilepsy Treatment Act of 2008 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to designate an epilepsy center of excellence at each of the five centers currently designated for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) research, education, and clinical activities on complex multi-trauma associated with combat injuries. Requires each center to: (1) employ expert clinical and research staff, including board-certified neurologists and neurosurgeons; and (2) among other things, research the diagnosis, treatment, and long-term effects of epilepsy, and develop a national system of coordinated care for veterans with epilepsy. Directs the Secretary to designate a national coordinator for epilepsy programs. Authorizes appropriations.

Date: 2007-06-21
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Long-Term Care Life Safety Act of 2007 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a program to award grants to nursing homes, hospice facilities, assisted living facilities, residential care program facilities, board and care facilities and other appropriate facilities for the purpose of retrofitting such facilities with a professionally installed fire alarm detection system or other fire detection and prevention technology. Requires the Secretary to give priority to applicants that demonstrate a need or hardship. Allows the Secretary to consider such factors as the age and condition of the facilities, the need for facility beds in the community involved, and requirements imposed on the applicant to meet fire safety regulations under Medicare, Medicaid, other federal programs, or state or local licensing or building code standards.

Date: 2007-06-27
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, as amended by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989, with respect to payments for reasonable costs of certified registered nurse anesthetist services in critical access hospitals. Declares that such hospitals shall be treated as being located in a rural area to permit pass-through of such payments, regardless of any geographic reclassification of the hospital, including reclassification as located in an urban county ("Lugar county"). Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to include on-call and standby costs in determining reasonable costs for such services.

Date: 2007-07-17
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act of 2007 - Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to provide for nationwide expansion of the pilot program for national and state background checks on direct patient access employees of long-term care facilities or providers. Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to: (1) require screening, including national criminal history background checks, of direct patient access employees of skilled nursing facilities, nursing facilities, and other long-term care facilities and providers; and (2) prohibit hiring of abusive workers. Requires the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to ensure that the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System of the FBI has the capacity to store and retrieve fingerprints from its database. Provides that, in the case where a direct patient access employee is convicted of a crime following the initial national criminal history background check, and the employee's fingerprint matches the prints on file with the FBI, the FBI shall inform the state law enforcement department in order for the state to inform the skilled nursing facility, nursing facility, or long-term care facility or provider of such conviction.

Date: 2007-07-18
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 to increase the authorization of appropriations for a major medical facility project to consolidate the Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers at the University Drive and H. John Heinz III divisions in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Date: 2007-07-19
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Southern New Jersey Veterans Comprehensive Health Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to determine, and notify Congress, whether the needs of veterans in southern New Jersey (the counties of Ocean, Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Salem, Cumberland, Atlantic, and Cape May) for full-service medical care shall be met through a project for: (1) inpatient and outpatient services and long-term care to veterans at an existing facility in southern New Jersey; or (2) construction of a new full-service, Department of Veterans Affairs medical center to provide inpatient and outpatient services and long-term care to veterans in southern New Jersey. Directs the Secretary: (1) if the existing facility option is chosen, to enter into an appropriate agreement for the provision of such care and services; or (2) if the new construction option is chosen, to carry out an appropriate major medical facility construction project for such purpose.

Date: 2007-08-02
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Declares that certain closed critical access hospitals and adjoining skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) that seek to reopen on or after the enactment of this Act shall be deemed to continue to be designated as a critical access hospital, and both the hospital and the SNF shall be deemed to continue to meet the applicable life safety code standards, for purposes of titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act. Confines the application of this Act to a hospital and an adjoining SNF that operated under common management before 1983 and closed during 2005, if before such closure the hospital was designated as a critical access hospital and the hospital and SNF both met the National Fire Protection Agency Life Health Safety Code as a facility existing as of March 16, 1982.

Date: 2007-09-20
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
National Trauma Institute Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to establish a National Trauma Institute in San Antonio, Texas. States that the Institute shall: (1) develop medical technologies to improve injury prevention and diagnosis, survival, and quality of life for victims of trauma and burn injury; and (2) implement a multidisciplinary, multi-center collaborative research effort, including coordination of trauma research carried out at Wilford Hall Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas, University Hospital, the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, and Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas.

Date: 2007-09-26
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act of 2007 - Amends part D (Miscellaneous) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) require each participating hospital to adopt and implement a staffing system that ensures a number of registered nurses on each shift and in each unit of the hospital to ensure appropriate staffing levels for patient care; (2) provide for the public reporting of certain staffing information, including a daily posting for each shift in the hospital of the current number of licensed and unlicensed nursing staff directly responsible for patient care; (3) prescribe recordkeeping, data collection, and evaluation requirements for participating hospitals; (4) specify civil monetary penalties for violations of such requirements; and (5) provide whistleblower protections.

Date: 2007-11-09
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Ensuring Medicare Access to Recreational Therapy Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking, or a transmittal amending the Medicare Benefits Policy Manual, or both, specifying that: (1) recreational therapy is a covered service under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act in inpatient rehabilitation facilities, inpatient psychiatric facilities, and skilled nursing facilities (SNFs); (2) recreational therapy is a skilled rehabilitative modality included in the bundle of services as part of the payment rates for such facilities under Medicare's respective prospective payment systems (PPS) for these inpatient settings; and (3) any recreational therapy that is provided to a Medicare beneficiary in such a facility prescribed by a physician as part of the facility's plan of care for the patient must be provided by a qualified recreational therapist.

Date: 2007-11-15
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
CAH Designation Waiver Authority Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the Medicare rural hospital flexibility program a state may establish. Authorizes state designation of a Medicare critical access hospital (CAH), even if it does not comply with the requirement that it be located more than a 35-mile drive from another hospital, if it is certified by the state on or after enactment of this Act as being a necessary provider of health care services to residents in the area. (Thus restores state authority that existed before January 1, 2006, to waive the 35-mile rule.)

Date: 2007-12-11
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Hospital Price Reporting and Disclosure Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require a hospital or ambulatory surgical center to: (1) report data to the Secretary of Health and Human Services regarding the frequency of performing certain services and administering certain drugs and the charge by the hospital or center for such services or drugs; and (2) prominently post such information at each admission site. Requires the Secretary to: (1) publicly post such information in a manner that promotes charge comparisons among hospitals and centers; and (2) select which services or drugs are to be reported based on how frequently each service is performed or each drug is administered. Allows the Secretary to impose a civil monetary penalty for violations of this Act.

Date: 2008-01-17
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Task Force on Medical Facility Improvements in Puerto Rico to: (1) consider options to renovate or replace the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital in Puerto Rico; (2) recommend to the Secretary which of the options should be implemented; and (3) report to the Secretary on its findings and recommendations.

Date: 2008-03-04
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Preserving Access to Hospice (PATH) Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for a temporary moratorium, from November 1, 2005, through October 31, 2008, on enforcement of the hospice cap amount. Directs the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) to study and report on: (1) the resource effectiveness and quality of hospice care as a substitute benefit for other acute care alternatives under Medicare; (2) the optimal median and average length of stay in hospice care under Medicare; (3) the reasons for persistently low median and average length of such stays; and (4) the desirability of requiring a national coverage determination of eligibility for hospice care under Medicare.

Date: 2008-03-06
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Provides for certain treatment of state authority to use federal funds received under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, notwithstanding the limitation on the use of provider-specific health care related taxes to obtain federal financial participation under Medicaid. Declares that nothing in such limitation shall be construed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as prohibiting a state's use of funds as the nonfederal share of Medicaid expenditures where they are transferred from or certified by a publicly-owned regional medical center located in another state, so long as the Secretary determines that such use is proper and in the interest of the Medicaid program.

Date: 2008-03-31
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Poison Center Support, Enhancement, and Awareness Act of 2008 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide coordination and assistance for the maintenance of the nationwide toll-free phone number to access poison centers. Changes the name of poison control centers to poison centers.Requires the Secretary to carry out and expand upon a national media campaign to educate the public and health care providers about poison prevention and the availability of poison center resources in local communities. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into contracts with a nationally recognized organization for the development and implementation of a nationwide poison prevention and poison center awareness campaign.Expands the poison center grant program to allow the Secretary to award grants for poison centers to comply with the operational requirements needed to sustain certification. Adds as the purposes for which such grants may be used: (1) to establish and evaluate best practices in the United States for poison prevention, poison center outreach, and emergency and preparedness programs; (2) to develop and implement standard patient management guidelines for commonly encountered toxic exposures; (3) to improve national toxic exposure surveillance; (4) to develop, support, and enhance technology and capabilities of professional organizations in the field of poison control to collect national poisoning, toxic occurrence, and related public health data; and (5) to develop initiatives to foster the enhanced public health utilization of national poison data. Eliminates matching requirements for such grants. Authorizes appropriations for FY2010-FY2014.

Date: 2008-04-01
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Physician Availability Act of 2008 - Requires each covered hospital to have a qualified physician available in the hospital 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to attend to the needs of the hospital's inpatients. Defines a "covered hospital" to: (1) include hospitals participating in Medicare or Medicaid or receiving federal funds; and (2) exclude hospitals in a federal facility or hospitals that the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines have fewer than 100 licensed beds. Considers a physician to be available if: (1) the physician is physically present in the hospital; (2) the physician's primary responsibility is to be in attendance to serve the needs of the hospital's inpatients without delay; and (3) the physician is not physically present in, assigned to, serving in, or expected to cover the hospital's emergency room or emergency department. Sets forth penalties for violations.

Date: 2008-04-09
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Medicaid Levy Enhancement Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a continuous levy on payments to Medicaid providers and suppliers for delinquent taxes owed by such providers and suppliers.

Date: 2008-04-10
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Taxation
Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act of 2008 - Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to direct skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and nursing facilities to make available, upon request, ownership and affiliated parties information to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and other responsible parties.Outlines accountability requirements for such institutions.Requires specified additional information to appear on the Department of Health and Human Services Nursing Home Compare Website.Requires SNFs to separately report expenditures for wages and benefits for different levels of nursing staff.Directs the Secretary to develop a standardized form for use by a resident (or a person acting on the resident's behalf) in filing a complaint about a SNF with a state survey and certification agency or long-term care ombudsman program. Requires a state to establish a complaint resolution process. Directs the Secretary to establish a program for SNFs to report staffing information based on payroll data.Increases certain civil monetary penalties for SNF violations.Requires the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on: (1) the financial status, resident care, and performance of SNFs and nursing facilities in the Special Focus Facility (or a successor) program of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services relative to a comparable sample of facilities outside such program; and (2) best practices for, and barriers to, the appointment of temporary management for SNFs with a record of poor care.Directs the Secretary to provide for an national independent monitoring program to oversee interstate and large intrastate chains of SNFs.Requires a SNF administrator to notify the Secretary and other responsible parties of an impending closure of the facility. Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstration projects on culture change and use of information technology in SNFs and nursing facilities.Provides for dementia management training and patient abuse prevention training. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on training for certified nurse aides and supervisory staff of SNFs and nursing facilities.

Date: 2008-04-15
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Facility Authorization and Lease Act of 2008 - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out major medical facility projects (projects) in FY2009 in: (1) Palo Alto, California; (2) San Antonio, Texas; and (3) San Juan, Puerto Rico. Amends the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 to increase the amount authorized under such Act for: (1) all projects; and (2) specified projects in Florida, Nevada, and Pennsylvania in connection with the Capital Asset Realignment Initiative. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out specified major medical facility leases (leases) in FY2009 in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a project in Okaloosa County, Florida. Authorizes appropriations for projects and leases authorized or increased under this Act. Directs the Secretary to submit to the congressional veterans' committees: (1) a report updating progress made in complying with provisions requiring the establishment of, and responsibilities for, a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Director of Construction and Facilities Management; and (2) an annual report on VA community-based outpatient clinics and other outpatient clinics.

Date: 2008-04-22
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
National Trauma Center Stabilization Act of 2008 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise provisions governing grants to trauma centers. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish four programs to award grants to public or nonprofit trauma centers to: (1) assist in defraying substantial uncompensated care costs; (2) further a center's core mission; (3) provide emergency relief to ensure continued and future availability of trauma service; and (4) support the development and maintenance of innovative information technology systems. Sets forth: (1) minimum qualifications of eligible centers, including requirements for levels of uncompensated care provided; and (2) preferences for awarding grants among level I, II, III, and IV trauma centers and among centers based on the changing availability of or demand for trauma care in the area served and financial need. Requires grantees to submit a long-term plan for providing trauma care.Requires the Secretary to: (1) annually determine and notify centers of their eligibility to receive a grant; and (2) periodically report on the status of such grants, the financial stability of the centers, the populations using the centers, and the effectiveness and efficiency of center activities.Authorizes appropriations for such grants for FY2009-FY2014 and specifies percentages to be reserved for the different types of grants.

Date: 2008-05-01
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Hospital and ASC Price Disclosure and Litigation Protection Act of 2008 - Prohibits a charge-related legal action from being brought by an individual against a hospital or ambulatory surgical center if the hospital or center: (1) has met the requirements under this Act; (2) has entered into an agreement with the uninsured individual before treatment that sets the maximum price that will be charged for such treatment; and (3) has met the terms of such agreement.Sets forth disclosures that a hospital or center must provide to an individual who is scheduled to receive treatment and include in any itemized bill, including: (1) the estimated price or the price charged for the treatment; (2) the payment rate for the treatment negotiated with the network plan or managed care plan that has the largest number of enrollees; and (3) the Medicare payment rate for the treatment. Excludes from such requirements a treatment for which there exists a third-party price arrangement unless the individual involved requests such information.Requires a hospital or ambulatory surgical center to report data to the Secretary of Health and Human Services regarding: (1) the frequency of performing certain services and administering certain drugs; (2) the charge by the hospital or center for such services or drugs; (3) the negotiated rate of payment for the treatment by the plan with the largest number of enrollees; and (4) the Medicare payment rate for the treatment.Requires the Secretary to: (1) publicly post such information on the Internet in a manner that promotes charge comparisons among hospitals and centers; and (2) select which services or drugs are to be reported based on the frequency with which the services are performed or the drugs are administered.

Date: 2008-05-08
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Veterans Revenue Enhancement Act of 2008 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish up to seven consolidated patient accounting centers for conducting industry-modeled regionalized Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) billing and collection activities.

Date: 2008-06-25
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Veterans Critical Access Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to the Medicare rural hospital flexibility program, to exempt from the critical access hospital inpatient bed limitation any beds provided for veterans whom the Department of Veterans Affairs referred for care in the hospital or for whom it is coordinating such care with other care being provided by the Department.

Date: 2008-07-21
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Veterans Health Equity Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, with respect to each of the 48 contiguous states, to ensure that veterans eligible for hospital care and medical services through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have access to: (1) at least one full-service hospital of the Veterans Health Administration in the state; or (2) hospital care and medical services comparable to that provided in full-service hospitals through contract with other health providers in the state.

Date: 2008-07-29
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Rural Hospital Assistance Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the additional inpatient hospital service payment (payment adjustment) for low-volume hospitals (usually meaning a "subsection (d) hospital" located more than 25 road miles from another subsection (d) hospital and having less than 800 discharges during the fiscal year.) Redefines low-volume hospital, for discharges occurring during FY2009 only, as a "subsection (d) hospital" located more than 15 (instead of 25) road miles from another "subsection (d) hospital" and having less than 1,500 (instead of 800) discharges of individuals entitled to, or enrolled for, Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) benefits ("tweeners,'' or hospitals too large to be critical access hospitals, but too small to be financially viable under the Medicare hospital prospective payment system (PPS)). Revises, for FY2009 only, the temporary applicable percentage in the formula for determining the payment adjustment for such hospitals. Requires the use of the non-wage adjusted prospective payment rate (PPS) rate during FY2009 under the Medicare-dependent hospital (MDH) program. Prescribes requirements for hospitals to qualify for a Medicare hospital exception to the prohibition on certain physician referrals to hospitals in which such physicians have an ownership or investment interest in the entity. (Eliminates the Medicare hospital exception for physician-owned hospitals, but provides a limited exception for existing facilities.)

Date: 2008-09-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to construct a new community-based outpatient clinic at the Ord Military Community, California. Makes such construction subject to: (1) the completion of a feasibility study; and (2) the availability of appropriations.

Date: 2008-09-24
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Quality FIRST (From Incentives, Reporting, Standards, and Technology) Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make performance-based payments each fiscal year to hospitals that provide high quality inpatient hospital services to inpatients entitled to benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance). Requires the Secretary to select appropriate evidence-based and statistically valid quality measures of care furnished by hospitals in inpatient settings for evaluating hospital performance. Requires a utilization and quality control peer review organization to give priority of quality improvement assistance to low-performing hospitals. Directs the Secretary to establish a program under which a hospital seeking to improve the quality of inpatient hospital services based on the results of a performance evaluation may apply to the Secretary to receive quality improvement assistance from a private quality organization with expertise in supporting inpatient service quality improvement.

Date: 2008-09-25
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Urban Medicare-Dependent Hospitals Preservation Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to cost reporting periods beginning on or after October 1, 2008, to revise the criteria and payment formula for "subsection (d) hospitals" which are urban Medicare-dependent hospitals.

Date: 2008-09-25
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Nursing Home Transparency and Quality of Care Improvement Act of 2008 - Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to direct skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and nursing facilities to make available, upon request, ownership and additional disclosable parties information to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and other responsible parties. Outlines accountability requirements for such institutions. Requires specified additional information to appear on the Department of Health and Human Services Nursing Home Compare Website. Requires SNFs to separately report expenditures for wages and benefits for direct care staff. Directs the Secretary to develop a standardized form for use by a resident (or a person acting on the resident's behalf) in filing a complaint about a SNF with a state survey and certification agency or long-term care ombudsman program. Requires a state to establish a complaint resolution process. Directs the Secretary to establish a program for SNFs and nursing facilities to report direct care staffing information based on payroll and other verifiable and auditable data. Increases certain civil monetary penalties for SNF and nursing facility violations. Directs the Secretary to evaluate the potential benefit and feasibility of applying independent monitoring requirements to interstate and large intrastate chains of SNFs and nursing facilities. Requires the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on best practices for, and barriers to, the appointment of temporary management for SNFs with a record of poor care. Requires a an individual SNF license holder to notify the Secretary and other responsible parties of an impending closure of the facility. Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstration projects on culture change and use of information technology in SNFs and nursing facilities. Directs the Secretary, among requirements for the approval of nurse aide training and competency evaluation programs, to include requirements for dementia management training and patient abuse prevention training. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on training for certified nurse aides and supervisory staff of SNFs and nursing facilities.

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require the full-time director of food services at a Medicare skilled nursing facility (SNF) or a Medicaid nursing facility, if not a qualified dietitian, to be a Certified Dietary Manager meeting the requirements of the Certifying Board for Dietary Managers or have equivalent military or academic qualifications.

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Protecting Hospital Outpatient and Community Clinic Services Act of 2008 - Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from taking any action before April 1, 2009 (including promulgation of regulations, issuance of regulatory guidance, use of federal payment audit procedures, or other administrative action, policy, or practice, including a Medical Assistance Manual transmittal or letter to state Medicaid directors), to impose any restrictions relating to a specified proposed regulation, if such restrictions are more restrictive in any aspect than those that applied to the subject matter of the proposed regulation as of September 27, 2007.Identifies the proposed regulation as the one published on September 28, 2007, relating to the outpatient clinic and hospital facility services definition and upper payment limit under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act.

Date: 2008-09-29
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Protecting Patients and Health Care Act of 2008 - Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from finalizing, enforcing, implementing, or taking other action in furtherance of specified proposed regulations regarding conscience clause protections for health care workers and facilities (under the authority of provisions commonly referred to as the Church Amendments and the Weldon Amendment).

Date: 2008-12-09
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Protecting Patients and Health Care Act - Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from finalizing, enforcing, implementing, or taking other action in furtherance of specified proposed regulations regarding conscience clause protections for health care workers and facilities (under the authority of provisions commonly referred to as the Church Amendments and the Weldon Amendment).

Date: 2008-11-20
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Nursing School Clinics Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage of nursing school clinic services.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Wakefield Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend by one year the length of time for which a grant may be awarded under the emergency medical services for children grant program, which allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to states or schools of medicine to support projects to expand and improve emergency medical services for children who need treatment for trauma or critical care. Sets forth as the purpose of the program the reduction of child and youth morbidity and mortality by supporting improvements in the quality of all emergency medical care children receive. Requires the Secretary to support emergency medical services for children by supporting projects that: (1) develop and present scientific evidence; (2) promote existing innovative technologies appropriate for the care of children; and (3) provide information on health outcomes and effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. Directs that such program: (1) strive to enhance the pediatric capability of emergency medical service systems; and (2) be coordinated with all research, evaluations, and awards undertaken by the federal government related to emergency medical services for children.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Health
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt certain small business taxpayers from the requirements of using the accrual method of accounting and of using inventories. Allows such taxpayers to use a cash method of accounting if they meet the gross receipts test and are not engaged in farming as a corporation. Increases the amount of the gross receipts test to $10 million (currently, $5 million) and permits an annual inflation adjustment of that amount.

Date: 2007-01-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Taxation
Securing America's Future Economy Commission Act, or SAFE Commission Act - Establishes the Securing America's Future Economy (SAFE) Commission to develop legislation designed to address: (1) the unsustainable imbalance between long-term federal spending commitments and projected revenues; (2) increases in net national savings to provide for domestic investment and economic growth; (3) the implications of foreign ownership of federally issued debt instruments; and (4) revision of the budget process to place greater emphasis on long-term fiscal issues. Requires the Commission to: (1) develop one or two methods for estimating the cost of legislation as an alternative to the current Congressional Budget Office (CBO) method; and (2) hold at least one town-hall style public hearing within each federal reserve district. Requires the Commission to submit a legislative proposal to Congress and the President. Authorizes the President to submit to Congress an alternative proposal. Authorizes the Committee on the Budget of either chamber to publish its own alternative proposal in the Congressional Record. Sets forth procedures for consideration of such legislation. Requires CBO to prepare a long-term cost estimate and have it published in the Congressional Record as expeditiously as possible whenever requested to do so by the Commission, the President, or the chairman or ranking minority member of the Committee on the Budget of either chamber.

Date: 2007-01-16
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Economics and public finance
Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a major medical facility project for a replacement facility for the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Denver, Colorado.

Date: 2007-02-01
Topic: Health (Medical Facilities)
Subject: Armed forces and national security