zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Ensuring Quality Health Care for All Americans Act of 2012 - Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and restores provisions of law amended by such Act or provisions. Repeals the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010 and restores provisions of law amended by such Act's health care provisions. Revises Public Health Service Act provisions concerning health insurance coverage to require each health insurance issuer offering health insurance coverage in the group market (currently, individual or group market) in a state to accept every employer and every individual in a group (currently, every employer and every individual) in the state applying for such coverage. Prohibits a group health plan or a health insurance issuer offering group health insurance coverage from imposing: (1) any preexisting condition exclusion with respect to such plan or coverage, or (2) lifetime or annual limits. Requires dependent coverage beyond age 18 until the first of either a dependent turning 26, marrying, or no longer residing at home. Requires plans to offer catastrophic coverage and sets forth coverage requirements. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to States for planning for the establishment and implementation of health insurance risk adjustment mechanisms. Sets forth provisions limiting the liability of health care providers.

Date: 2012-03-22
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Veterans Co-Pay Fairness Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), in the case of a veteran entitled to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act or enrolled under Medicare part B (Supplemental Security Income), to reimburse such veteran for the Medicare deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance applied against such veteran with respect to emergency medical treatment items and services provided in non-VA facilities.

Date: 2012-03-22
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
VA Enrollment Act - Includes among veterans eligible to receive reimbursement from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for emergency treatment services provided in a non-VA facility those who enroll in the VA health care system within 30 days after receiving such emergency treatment.

Date: 2012-03-22
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Restoring Access to Medication Act of 2012 - Repeals provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, that limit payments for medications from health savings accounts, Archer medical savings accounts, and health flexible spending arrangements and reimbursement arrangements to only prescription drugs or insulin (thus allowing distributions from such accounts for over-the-counter drugs).

Date: 2012-05-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Quality Improvement Organization Program Restoration Act - Amends the Trade Adjustment Assistance Extension Act of 2011 to repeal its revisions to requirements for contracts with Medicare Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs). Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to specify expenditures or funding for: (1) 3-year QIO contracts for contract periods beginning on or after August 1, 2014, and ending on or before July 31, 2021, but with a certain reduction in aggregate funds payable after October 1, 2014; and (2) contracts with utilization and quality control peer review organizations for any contract period beginning on or after August 1, 2014.

Date: 2012-06-08
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Choice in Healthcare Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a demonstration program under which Medicare and Medicaid eligible beneficiaries are given: (1) the option of purchasing qualifying health benefits coverage, and (2) access to a debit style card (Medi-Choice card) for purchasing such coverage under the program and for paying certain other out-of-pocket health care expenditures. Directs the Secretary to contract with a major credit card provider or financial institution for issuing Medi-Choice cards under the program. Limits the demonstration program to specified counties in California and to a period of ten years.

Date: 2012-06-21
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2012 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) give states the option to provide Medicaid coverage for low-income HIV-infected individuals, and (2) provide an enhanced federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) to states taking this option. Amends SSA title XI to exempt medical assistance for optional low-income HIV-infected individuals from the funding limitation for territories.

Date: 2012-06-21
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Veterans E-Health & Telemedicine Support Act of 2012 or VETS Act of 2012 - Allows a health care professional who is authorized to provide health care through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and who is a licensed professional to practice at any location in any state, the District of Columbia, or U.S. commonwealth, territory, or possession, regardless of where the professional or patient is located, if the professional is using telemedicine to provide treatment. Allows such treatment regardless of whether such professional or patient is located in a facility owned by the federal government.

Date: 2012-07-12
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Medicare Better Health Rewards Program Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a three-year Better Health Rewards Program under which incentives are provided to Medicare beneficiaries who voluntarily agree to participate in the Program. Directs the Secretary to establish standards for measuring better health targets and points for achieving them for participating Medicare beneficiaries, including those for: (1) an annual wellness visit, (2) tobacco cessation, (3) Body Mass Index (BMI), (4) a diabetes screening test, (5) cardiovascular disease screening, (6) cholesterol level screening, and (7) screening tests and specified vaccinations. Requires the Secretary to make specified incentive payments to each participating Medicare beneficiary who achieves at least 20 points during a year. Authorizes Medicare Advantage Plans, "Section 1876" health maintenance organization and competitive medical cost plans, and programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) to make incentives to their enrollees to participate in a Better Health Rewards Program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any payment made under: (1) the Medicare Better Health Rewards Program; and (2) any other Better Health Rewards Program.

Date: 2012-07-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to allow a state-authorized public entity benefits pool to apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for pass-through funding with respect to health care benefits provided through the pool for coverage years beginning on or after January 1, 2014. Requires the Secretary to approve such a pool if the pool will: (1) provide at least the essential health benefits; (2) provide coverage and cost-sharing protections against excessive out-of-pocket spending that are at least as affordable as the health insurance requirements of PPACA would provide; and (3) result in cost savings to the federal government because the cost of coverage through the pool is less than the cost of coverage through an exchange. Treats an individual covered under such a plan as having minimum essential coverage for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code. Requires the Secretary to provide for an alternative means by which an aggregate amount shall be paid to the pool annually based on the premium tax credits, cost-sharing reductions, and small business credits that would have been provided to an exchange plan. Gives the Secretary 180 days to make a determination on an application under this Act.

Date: 2012-07-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Start Healthy Act of 2012 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to provide: (1) mandatory coverage of qualified (uninsured) newborns, and (2) 100% federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for temporary coverage of such newborns.

Date: 2012-08-01
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Guaranteed Access to Health Insurance Act of 2012 - Repeals the health insurance and health coverage expansion provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and related provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. Restores provisions of law amended or repealed by them. Amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the program to establish state high risk health insurance pools to include qualified reinsurance programs and other innovative methods implemented by a state to provide access to health insurance coverage for eligible individuals that will: (1) mitigate the cost of providing such coverage better than a qualified high risk pool; and (2) ensure that individuals receive consumer protections that are similar to those required for a qualified high risk pool. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to a state for its costs for creating and initially operating a qualified reinsurance program or an innovative method. Makes states that establish a qualified reinsurance program or an innovative method eligible for grants for losses incurred in connection with its operation. Revises requirements for a qualified high risk pool. Prohibits lifetime limits as well as premiums greater than 150% of the average premium in the individual market for health insurance coverage in the state. Eliminates bonus grants for supplemental consumer benefits for current or potential enrollees in qualified high risk pools. Requires the Secretary, in awarding competitive grants for federal funding for which only states are eligible, to give preference to any state that has received a grant to create and operate a qualified high risk pool in the year during which that grant is awarded. Requires the Secretary to establish a federal fallback high risk pool program to provide health insurance coverage for eligible individuals in a state that: (1) has not established a high risk pool, qualified reinsurance program, or innovative method at any point in the five-year period before October 1, 2015; or (2) has failed to operate such a pool, program, or method for two consecutive years after such date. Terminates the federal program if the state establishes such a pool, program, or method.

Date: 2012-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Safeguarding Care Of Patients Everywhere Act or SCOPE Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to repeal the requirement that qualified health plans contract only with health care providers, including hospitals with more than 50 beds, that implement a specified patient safety evaluation system and health care quality mechanisms required by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Date: 2012-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
PCIP Improvement Act of 2012 - Amends the Public Health Service Act with respect to immediate access to insurance under the Preexisting Condition Insurance Program (PCIP) for uninsured individuals with a preexisting condition. Revises the eligibility requirement for the temporary high risk health insurance pool under the PCIP that individuals be without creditable coverage for six months before applying for coverage through the high risk pool. Adds the condition that an individual has not had creditable coverage terminated in order to become eligible through such pool. Defines “creditable coverage” to exclude any coverage (commonly referred to as mini-med coverage) that limits the annual benefits payable to an amount less than $250,000.

Date: 2012-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Veterans Health Access Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, when it is determined that Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities are not capable of furnishing economic hospital care or medical services because of geographical inaccessibility or the care or services required, to determine whether or not to furnish such care or services to a veteran in a non-VA facility. Requires such determination to be made within 30 days following the request for such care or services. Amends the Wounded Warrior Act to authorize the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to allow any former member of the Armed Forces with a severe injury or illness to receive necessary medical and dental care in a non-VA facility when such care is determined by the member's physician to be in their best interest. Extends such authority through 2016.

Date: 2012-09-13
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Medicare Secondary Payer and Late Enrollment Penalty Family Fairness Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to apply the eligibility requirements of Medicare special enrollment periods, secondary payer rules, and late enrollment penalties in a way to take into consideration the current employment status of all family members of an employee (currently, only the employment status of the employee or of the employee's spouse).

Date: 2012-09-19
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicaid Integrity Act of 2012 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act with respect to a state's option to use Medicaid managed care organizations and primary care case managers. Requires a state, acting through the state medical assistance agency or another state entity, in order to receive federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) payments for expenditures under a contract with a managed care entity, to contract with an independent auditor to conduct biannual financial and performance-compliance audits of the entity. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to set uniform audit standards according to specified requirements. Requires the state to document for the Secretary its response to deficiencies reported in such audits. Requires contracts between the state and managed care entities to require the managed care entity to give the independent auditor access to all necessary information. Establishes sanctions for misrepresentation or falsification of information. Prescribes requirements a state must meet to be allowed to enter into an agreement with an actuary with respect to the state's administration of a contract with a managed care entity.

Date: 2012-09-21
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
American Liberty Restoration Act - Repeals provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that require individuals to maintain minimum essential health care coverage. Applies the Internal Revenue Code as if such provisions had never been enacted.

Date: 2011-01-25
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
State Leadership in Health Care Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to allow states to apply for a waiver of specified requirements under PPACA with respect to health insurance coverage within that state due to implementation of a state plan that provides comparable coverage for plan years beginning in 2014 (currently, 2017). Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) or the Secretary of the Treasury to deny waivers only if: (1) the state plan does not meet requirements for granting a waiver, (2) the Secretary of HHS or Treasury notifies the state in writing of the requirements that the state plan did not meet and provides the state with information used in making such a determination, and (3) the state is given an opportunity to appeal. Requires the Secretary of HHS or Treasury to reconsider the determination in the event of an appeal and issue a written decision within 60 days.

Date: 2011-01-25
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through June 30, 2012, the increased 80% tax credit for health insurance costs (including advance payments) for trade adjustment assistance (TAA) and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) pension recipients. Makes TAA recipients who are in a break in training under a training program, or who are receiving unemployment compensation, eligible for such tax credit for the period through June 30, 2012. Amends the Internal Revenue Code, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to extend through June 30, 2012, the TAA pre-certification period rule disregarding any 63-day lapse in creditable health care coverage for TAA workers. Extends the continued eligibility for the credit for qualifying family members and certain qualified TAA-eligible individuals and PBGC pension recipients for COBRA premium assistance through June 30, 2012. Extends through June 30, 2012, coverage under an employee benefit plan funded by a voluntary employees' beneficiary association established pursuant to an order of a bankruptcy court, or by agreement with an authorized representative. Expands for the two-year period beginning after the enactment of this Act the continuous tax levy on payments to vendors for goods and services leased to the federal government to include payments for all property sold or leased to the federal government.

Date: 2011-01-27
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Medication Therapy Management Empowerment Act of 2011 - Amends part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA), as amended by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to increase the number of diseases and conditions for which beneficiaries may be targeted for medication therapy management (MTM) services. Requires a Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) sponsor to establish a process, subject to approval by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), for identifying individuals who are not targeted beneficiaries, are not otherwise offered MTM services, and whom a pharmacist or other qualified provider determines may benefit from MTM services. Requires any such individual to be treated as a targeted beneficiary. Requires any MTM program to offer both comprehensive and targeted medication reviews to individuals dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid (under SSA title XIX), regardless of whether they are MTM-targeted beneficiaries. Requires a PDP sponsor to offer any willing pharmacy in its network and any other qualified health care provider the opportunity to provide MTM services. Requires the PDP sponsor to reimburse pharmacists and other qualified health care providers furnishing MTM services based on the resources used and the time required to provide such services. Directs the Secretary of HHS to: (1) establish measures and standards for data collection by PDP sponsors to evaluate performance of pharmacies and other entities in furnishing MTM services; and (2) support the continued development and refinement of performance measures. Provides pharmacies and other entities that furnish MTM services with additional incentive payments based on their performance in meeting quality measures established under this Act.

Date: 2011-02-03
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medical Foods Equity Act of 2011 - Amends titles XVIII (Medicare), XIX (Medicaid), and XXI (Children's Health Insurance Program) (CHIP, formerly known as SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to include coverage of: (1) medically necessary food and food modified to be low protein that is formulated to be consumed or administered under the supervision of a physician and the medical equipment and supplies necessary to administer such food; and (2) pharmacological doses of vitamins and amino acids used for the treatment of inborn errors of metabolism. Applies such coverage requirements to the TRICARE program (military health care). Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require health plans to provide coverage of such food, vitamins, and amino acids. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to determine the minimum yearly coverage for all health insurance plans based upon the expanded coverage provided by this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to establish age-specific minimum levels of coverage. Declares that the minimum yearly coverage determined by the Secretary shall not preempt any state standards that require a higher minimum yearly coverage level for the same services and benefits.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Equal Access to COBRA Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and Public Health Service Act to expand COBRA coverage (health insurance continuation benefits) to include an employee's domestic partner and any dependent child of the domestic partner.

Date: 2011-03-10
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Labor and employment
Huntington's Disease Parity Act of 2011 - Directs the Commissioner of Social Security, for purposes of determining cognitive, behavioral, and physical disability under titles II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to amend specified Listings of Impairments by providing medical and evaluation criteria for Huntington's Disease. Amends SSA title II to waive the 24-month waiting period for coverage under the Medicare program for individuals diagnosed with Hunington's Disease.

Date: 2011-03-17
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) Medicare should not be dismantled and turned into a voucher or premium-support program; (2) deficit reduction should not be achieved by simply passing on the costs of health care to Medicare beneficiaries; (3) guaranteed Medicare benefits should be preserved; (4) medical decisions should be made by seniors and their doctors, not insurance companies; and (5) deficit reduction should be achieved by lowering health care costs through delivery system reforms.

Date: 2011-04-12
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Children's Access to Reconstructive Evaluation & Surgery (CARES) Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group or individual health plan that covers surgical benefits to also cover outpatient and inpatient diagnosis and treatment of a congenital or developmental deformity, disease, or injury of a minor child (defined as child under the age of 22). Requires that such coverage: (1) be subject to pre-authorization or pre-certification requirements of the plan or issuer, and (2) include any surgical treatment deemed by the treating physician to be medically necessary to approximate a normal appearance. Defines "treatment" to include reconstructive surgical procedures that are performed on abnormal structures of the body caused by congenital defects, developmental abnormalities, trauma, burns, infection, tumors, or disease, including: (1) procedures that do not materially affect the function of the body part being treated, and (2) procedures for secondary conditions and follow-up treatment. Excludes cosmetic surgery performed to reshape normal structures of the body to improve appearance or self-esteem. Applies the provisions of this Act to grandfathered health plans under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Date: 2011-05-23
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Help Efficient, Accessible, Low Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2011 - Sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims regarding health care goods or services or any medical product affecting interstate commerce. Sets a statute of limitations of three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers the injury, with certain exceptions. Limits noneconomic damages to $250,000. Makes each party liable only for the amount of damages directly proportional to such party's percentage of responsibility. Allows the court to restrict the payment of attorney contingency fees. Limits the fees to a decreasing percentage based on the increasing value of the amount awarded. Allows the introduction of collateral source benefits and the amount paid to secure such benefits as evidence. Prohibits a provider of such benefits from recovering any amount from an award in a health care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. Authorizes the award of punitive damages only where: (1) it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that a person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant or deliberately failed to avoid unnecessary injury the claimant was substantially certain to suffer; and (2) compensatory damages are awarded. Limits punitive damages to the greater of two times the amount of economic damages or $250,000. Denies punitive damages in the case of products approved, cleared, or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or otherwise considered in compliance with FDA standards. Provides for periodic payments of future damages.

Date: 2011-05-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Provider Tax Administrative Simplification Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to approve a waiver of the uniform tax requirement (whether or not the tax is broad based), regardless of whether the state concerned satisfies certain requirements, for any state with a provider tax that does not apply to continuing care retirement communities or life care communities that: (1) have no beds certified to provide medical assistance under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, or (2) do not provide services for which Medicaid payment may be made.

Date: 2011-05-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
TAA Health Coverage Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for the health insurance costs of trade adjustment assistance (TAA) workers, to: (1) increase the rate of such credit form 65% to 95% of health insurance costs; (2) allow a 100% tax credit and a full payment of TAA worker health insurance premiums for months prior to the issuance of a qualified health insurance costs credit eligibility certificate; and (3) set forth new tax credit eligibility rules for TAA workers and their family members, including for TAA workers who are not enrolled in training programs. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to: (1) prevent a lapse of health care coverage for TAA workers and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) recipients, (2) allow a permanent extension of COBRA coverage (health insurance continuation benefits) for certain TAA workers and PBGC recipients, and (3) align COBRA coverage periods under such Act with eligibility periods for TAA workers. Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), jointly with the Secretary of the Treasury, to establish a program to offer TAA workers enrollment in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program (FEHBP) and to conduct a study of the impact of such program on FEHBP. Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to: (1) require a state or entity to use national emergency grant funds to provide TAA workers and their family members with health insurance coverage for periods prior to their first eligibility month, and (2) require the Secretary of Labor to report to Congress on failures to provide assistance to states in expediting applications for national emergency grants.

Date: 2011-05-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Social Security Number Protection Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and begin to implement procedures to eliminate the unnecessary collection, use, and display of Social Security account numbers of Medicare beneficiaries on Medicare identification cards and communications. Prohibits a Social Security card also from storing a Social Security account number electronically. Allows the display of a Social Security number on written or electronic communications only if the Secretary determines that its inclusion on such communications is essential for the operation of the Medicare program.

Date: 2011-06-23
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Retirement Freedom Act - Allows any individual who is otherwise entitled to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to elect to opt out of such entitlement. Allows an individual who has opted out of Medicare to opt back in without penalty. Prohibits any requirement to opt out of SSA title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) as a condition for opting out of Medicare.

Date: 2011-06-30
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Savings Through Eligibility Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to modify the definition of "modified adjusted gross income" for purposes of eligibility for the refundable tax credit for coverage under a qualified health plan to include in such income the portion of a taxpayer's social security and tier 1 railroad retirement benefits that are not included in gross income for income tax purposes.

Date: 2011-07-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Medical FSA Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow amounts in a flexible spending arrangement (FSA) that are not spent for medical care to be distributed to the FSA participant as taxable income after the close of a plan year (currently, such unspent amounts are forfeited). Includes such FSAs in the definition of tax-exempt cafeteria plans.

Date: 2011-07-21
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Respect for Rights of Conscience Act of 2011 - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to permit a health plan to decline coverage of specific items and services that are contrary to the religious beliefs of the sponsor, issuer, or other entity offering the plan or the purchaser or beneficiary (in the case of individual coverage) without penalty.  Declares that such plans are still considered to: (1) be providing the essential health benefits package or preventive health services, (2) be a qualified health plan, and (3) have fulfilled other requirements under PPACA. Declares that nothing in PPACA shall be construed to authorize a health plan to require a provider to provide, participate in, or refer for a specific item or service contrary to the provider's religious beliefs or moral convictions. Prohibits a health plan from being considered to have failed to provide timely or other access to items or services or to fulfill any other requirement under PPACA because it has respected the rights of conscience of such a provider. Prohibits an American Health Benefit Exchange (a state health insurance exchange) or other official or entity acting in a governmental capacity in the course of implementing PPACA from discriminating against a health plan, plan sponsor, health care provider, or other person because of an unwillingness to provide coverage of, participate in, or refer for, specific items or services. Creates a private cause of action for the protection of individual rights created under this Act. Authorizes any person or entity to assert a violation of this Act as a claim or defense in a judicial proceeding. Designates the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to receive and investigate complaints of discrimination based on this Act. Makes this Act effective as if it were included in PPACA.

Date: 2011-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicare Cost Contract Extension Act of 2011 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend through December 31, 2015, the indefinite extendability or renewability of Medicare reasonable cost reimbursement contracts.

Date: 2011-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Ensure Children Have Health Care Act - Permits a health insurance issuer that is licensed to offer child-only health insurance coverage in one state to also offer such coverage to eligible residents of other states. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) provide for the application of a uniform annual enrollment period for such coverage; and (2) promulgate regulations that provide protections to enrollees, ensure the solvency of health insurance issuers that offer such coverage, and clarify the procedures that would apply when an enrollee has a complaint concerning his or her coverage.

Date: 2011-08-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Care Bureaucrats Elimination Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to eliminate the Independent Payment Advisory Board charged with developing and submitting to the President, for Congress to consider, detailed proposals to reduce the per capita rate of growth in Medicare spending. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the limitation on recapture of excess advance payments of the tax credit for health insurance premiums.

Date: 2012-02-16
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Congressional Health Care for Seniors Act of 2012 - Allows access to the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) beginning in 2014 for persons who would have been entitled to, or could have enrolled in part A (Hospital Insurance) Medicare benefits, or who could have enrolled in part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) Medicare. States that a covered individual who elects to enroll in such program shall enroll as an individual and not as self and family. Bases monthly premiums on adjusted gross income. Requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to establish procedures to ensure that health benefits plans coordinate with state Medicaid programs regarding cost-sharing and other medical assistance for covered individuals enrolled in health benefit plans who are also eligible for medical assistance and enrolled in a state Medicaid program. Requires OPM, at the end of each contract year, to identify high risk individuals and pay to a carrier contracting to provide a health benefits plan to a high risk individual 90% of the benefits paid by the carrier for such individual. Defines "high risk individual" as an enrolled individual who, of all individuals enrolled in a health benefits plan for the contract year, is in the highest 5% in terms of benefits paid by a carrier for the contract year. Exempts health benefits plans from specified insurance requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Amends the Social Security Act to incrementally increase the Medicare qualifying age from 65 years to 70 years, by 2034, plus the number of months in a specified age increase factor. Sunsets Medicare, on January 1, 2014, with a transition to FEHBP coverage. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make available to states recommendations with respect to specified requirements for health care entities and individuals under Medicare that will no longer apply but that should be considered on the state level.

Date: 2012-03-15
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicare Better Health Rewards Program Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a three-year Better Health Rewards Program under which incentives are provided to Medicare beneficiaries who voluntarily agree to participate in the Program. Directs the Secretary to establish standards for measuring better health targets and points for achieving them for participating Medicare beneficiaries, including those for: (1) an annual wellness visit, (2) tobacco cessation, (3) Body Mass Index (BMI), (4) a diabetes screening test, (5) cardiovascular disease screening, (6) cholesterol level screening, and (7) screening tests and specified vaccinations. Requires the Secretary to make specified incentive payments to each participating Medicare beneficiary who achieves at least 20 points during a year. Authorizes Medicare Advantage Plans, "Section 1876" health maintenance organization and competitive medical cost plans, and programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) to make incentives to their enrollees to participate in a Better Health Rewards Program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any payment made under: (1) the Medicare Better Health Rewards Program; and (2) any other Better Health Rewards Program.

Date: 2012-03-28
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Access to Independent Health Insurance Advisors Act of 2012 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to exclude remuneration paid for licensed independent insurance producers from administrative cost calculations for purposes of calculating the medical-loss ratio of a health insurance plan. Defines "independent insurance producer" to mean an insurance agent or broker, insurance consultant, benefit specialist, limited insurance representative, and any other person required to be licensed under the laws of the particular state to sell, solicit, negotiate, service, effect, procure, renew, or bind policies of insurance coverage or offer advice, counsel, opinions, or services related to insurance.

Date: 2012-04-17
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to requirements for the fee schedule for diagnostic imaging services provided by a physician. Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services: (1) furnished between 60 days after enactment of this Act and January 1, 2013; or (2) furnished in 2013 or subsequently unless the reduction is based on the analysis of an expert panel on diagnostic imaging services convened by the Institute of Medicine. Directs the Secretary to request the Institute of Medicine to convene such an expert panel to analyze the appropriateness of applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services.

Date: 2012-04-25
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Military Health Care Protection Act of 2012 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) career military personnel and their families endure unique and extraordinary demands and make extraordinary sacrifices over the course of a 20-30 year career, and (2) those decades of sacrifice constitute a significant pre-paid premium for health care during a career member's retirement that is over and above what the member pays with money. Prohibits any cost-sharing requirement under the Department of Defense (DOD) pharmacy benefits program, as well as deductibles under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS), from being increased by a percentage greater than that year's percentage increase in retired pay. Prohibits CHAMPUS inpatient charges from exceeding 25% of their total cost or $708 per day. Prohibits, beginning with FY2013, the maximum annual limit on charges under CHAMPUS from being increased by a percentage greater than that year's percentage increase in retired pay. Prohibits former members of the Armed Forces who are entitled to retired pay, as well as dependents of members who died while on active duty or from an injury, illness, or disease incurred while on active duty, from being charged an enrollment fee for CHAMPUS coverage or from being subject to denial of claims for coverage based on failure to enroll.

Date: 2012-05-17
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Equal Access to Medicare Options Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide all Medicare beneficiaries, regardless of whether they have enrolled in Medicare part B, as well as Medicare Advantage and Medicaid enrollees with the right to guaranteed issue of a supplemental insurance (Medigap) policy. Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of SSA title XVIII to permit enrollment of individuals with end stage renal disease (ESRD) in Medicare Advantage.

Date: 2012-06-07
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to provide that provisions of such Act imposing a penalty for failure to purchase minimum essential health care coverage shall not be construed as imposing any tax or as an exercise of any power of Congress under the Constitution to impose a tax. Makes the effective date of the amendment made by this Act retroactive to the enactment date of PPACA.

Date: 2012-07-19
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Military Health Care Affordability Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) so long as the United States sends men and women into battle, the United States will be faithful to care for them upon their return; (2) as the veteran answered the call of duty, so too, is the United States duty-bound to answer the call of the veteran; and (3) the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have the tools and ingenuity to provide continued excellent health care without increasing TRICARE payments from the veteran before fiscal year 2014.

Extends through FY2015 (under current law, through FY2011) the prohibition on increases in certain health care costs and restrictions on health benefit adjustments for members of the Armed Forces, retirees, and their dependents, including charges and premiums under TRICARE (a DOD managed care program) and cost-sharing requirements under the DOD pharmacy benefits program.

Date: 2013-01-03
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to extend to U.S. territories a program requiring the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a temporary high risk health insurance pool program to provide health insurance coverage to eligible individuals with a preexisting condition.

Date: 2013-01-03
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Reclaiming Individual Liberty Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal provisions added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requiring individuals to purchase and maintain minimum essential health care coverage.

Date: 2013-01-03
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Medicaid Integrity Act of 2013 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act with respect to a state's option to use Medicaid managed care organizations and primary care case managers.

Requires a state, acting through the state medical assistance agency or another state entity, in order to receive federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) payments for expenditures under a contract with a managed care entity, to contract with an independent auditor to conduct biannual financial and performance-compliance audits of the entity.

Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to set uniform audit standards according to specified requirements.

Requires the state to document for the Secretary its response to deficiencies reported in such audits.

Requires contracts between the state and managed care entities to require the managed care entity to give the independent auditor access to all necessary information.

Establishes sanctions for misrepresentation or falsification of information.

Prescribes requirements a state must meet to be allowed to enter into an agreement with an actuary with respect to the state's administration of a contract with a managed care entity.

Date: 2013-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat membership in a tax-exempt health care sharing ministry as coverage under a high deductible health plan for purposes of the tax deduction for contributions to a health savings account.

Date: 2013-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Veterans Health Equity Act of 2013 - 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 VA hospital in the state, or (2) hospital care and medical services comparable to that provided in full-service VA hospitals through contract with other health providers in the state.

Directs the Secretary to report to Congress on compliance with such requirement, including its effect on improving the quality and standards of veterans' care.

Date: 2013-01-15
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Public Option Deficit Reduction Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to offer through Exchanges a health benefits plan (public health insurance option) that ensures choice, competition, and stability of affordable, high-quality coverage throughout the United States. Declares that the Secretary's primary responsibility is to create a low-cost plan without compromising quality or access to care.

Sets forth provisions related to the establishment and governance of the public health insurance option, including that such plan: (1) may be made available only through Exchanges; (2) must comply with requirements applicable to other health benefits plans offered through such Exchanges, including requirements related to benefits, benefit levels, provider networks, notices, consumer protections, and cost sharing; and (3) must offer bronze, silver, and gold plan levels.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish an office of the ombudsman for the public health insurance option, (2) collect such data as may be required to establish premiums and payment rates, (3) establish geographically adjusted premiums at a level sufficient to fully finance the costs of the health benefits provided and administrative costs related to the operation of the plan, and (4) establish payment rates and provide for greater payment rates for the first three years.

Requires repayment of start-up costs for the public health insurance option.

Authorizes the Secretary to utilize innovative payment mechanisms and policies to determine payments for items and services under the public health insurance option.

Date: 2013-01-15
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
CHAMPVA Children's Protection Act of 2013 - Increases from 23 to 26 the maximum age of eligibility for certain dependent children of veterans for medical care under CHAMPVA (the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs [VA]).

Date: 2013-01-15
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Stop Abortion Funding in Multi-state Exchange Plans Act or SAFE Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to require the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), in entering into contracts with health insurance issuers, to ensure that no multi-state qualified health plan offered in a health benefit exchange provides coverage of abortion. Excepts from such limitation: (1) a pregnancy that results from rape or incest; or (2) a case where a woman suffers from a physical disorder, injury, or illness that would place the her in danger of death unless an abortion is performed, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself.

Preempts any state law requiring coverage of or funding for abortions in multi-state health plans.

Date: 2013-01-22
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Public Option Act or Medicare You Can Buy Into Act - Amends part A of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to authorize an option for any citizen or permanent resident of the United States to buy into Medicare.

Date: 2013-02-05
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health