zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Patients' Health Care Reform Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to provide for the establishment and governance of : (1) HealthMarts, which are nonprofit organizations that offer health benefits coverage to employers, employees, and individuals through contracts with health insurance issuers; and (2) individual membership associations (IMAs), which are organizations that offer health benefits coverage to members through health insurance issuer contracts. Requires the Secretary of Heath and Human Services to pay 50% of a state's costs to provide health benefits coverage under a high-risk pool, a reinsurance pool, or other risk-adjustment mechanisms used to subsidize the purchase of private health insurance.Small Business Access and Choice for Entrepreneurs Act of 2007 [sic]- Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide for establishment and governance of association health plans, which are group health plans whose sponsors are trade, industry, professional, chamber of commerce, or similar business associations and which meet certain ERISA certification requirements.Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide individuals with a tax credit for payments for qualified health insurance and allows the Secretary of the Treasury to make advance payments of the credit to providers. Excludes from gross income any compensating coverage payment made by an employer to an employee who elects not to participate in the employer's subsidized health plan.Requires health insurance issuers offering coverage in connection with a group health plan to provide certain information to the administrator of the plan, including information regarding: (1) plan benefits and exclusions; (2) a participant's financial responsibilities; and (3) legal recourse options for participants and beneficiaries.

Date: 2008-04-29
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicaid and SCHIP Abuse Prevention Act of 2008 - Amends titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to place a ceiling on an invidiual's eligibility for Medicaid and SCHIP benefits at a gross family income that is not more than 250% of the poverty level.

Date: 2008-05-05
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Care Consumer Protection Act of 2008 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require an issuer of group health insurance coverage in connection with a group health plan that cancels or does not renew the coverage by reason of nonpayment of premiums to: (1) provide to the administrator of the plan and to each participant receiving coverage, during the 14-day period beginning on the date of such cancellation or non-renewal, written notice of the cancellation or non-renewal, the reason for such cancellation or non-renewal, and the right of reinstatement; and (2) reinstate the coverage as if it had not lapsed if the premiums due and such reasonable administrative fee as the state regulating such coverage may specify are paid to the issuer by not later than 60 days after the date the cancellation or non-renewal would otherwise have become effective.Applies such requirement in the same manner to health insurance coverage offered by a health insurance issuer in the individual market. Requires the notice to be provided to an association or other organization responsible for paying premiums as well as the individuals whose coverage is affected.

Date: 2008-05-15
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Save Medicare Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007, to: (1) increase the Medicare physician payment update for 2009; and (2) extend the physician quality reporting system, the incentive payment program for physician scarcity areas, the floor on the work geographic adjustment to the physician fee schedule, and the accommodation for physicians ordered to active duty in the armed services.Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the provisions of, and amendments made by, this Act should be deficit neutral over the five year period beginning on October 1, 2008; and (2) Congress should address the challenges facing the Medicare program in a fiscally responsible manner.Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the Medicare program should provide payments to physicians and other health professionals that serve as positive incentives for participation in voluntary initiatives to improve health care quality; and (2) financing for such initiatives should be non-punitive and exempt from the Medicare physician fee schedule budget neutrality requirements.

Date: 2008-05-20
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Equality in Medicare Advantage Payment Act of 2008 - Amends part C (Medicare Advantage) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make budget-neutral adjustments in payments to Medicare+Choice organizations to reduce the variation in Medicare Advantage payment rates among counties in the same state within a very large metropolitan area.

Date: 2008-06-03
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
TRICARE Continuity of Coverage for National Guard and Reserve Families Act of 2008 - Makes a member of the Retired Reserve who is qualified for a non-regular (reserve) retirement at age 60, but is not yet 60, eligible for health benefits under TRICARE Standard (a Department of Defense (DOD) managed health care program for members of the reserves). Terminates such eligibility when the member becomes eligible for TRICARE Standard at age 60. Includes immediate family members under such coverage. Requires members to pay a premium for such coverage.

Date: 2008-06-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to prescribe special rules for Medicare coverage of individuals receiving a heart transplant.

Date: 2008-06-05
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Social welfare
Small Business Health Options Program Act of 2008 or the SHOP Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate an office within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to administer a health insurance program for small businesses and self-employed individuals to purchase health insurance coverage meeting certain requirements. Establishes a Small Business Health Board to monitor the implementation of the program and make recommendations for improvements.Requires the Administrator of the program to: (1) enter into contracts with health insurance issuers to provide health insurance coverage under this Act; and (2) enter into agreements with entities to serve as navigators to provide information about the program and assist in enrollment.Requires a participating employer to ensure that each eligible employee has an opportunity to enroll in a plan. Sets forth requirements for health plans offered under this Act. Requires the Administrator to contract with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to study the rating requirements, administrative procedures, and standards of external and internal review that apply to such plans and to health insurance purchased in the small group markets in the states and to develop recommendations concerning rating requirements.Sets forth premium-setting rules for plans under this Act.Allows a state to prohibit participation in this program if the state offers alternative health benefit plans.Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for small employers for qualified employee health insurance expenses under this Act.

Date: 2008-06-09
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
America's Affordable Health Care Act of 2008 - Authorizes a health insurance issuer to apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to certify health insurance coverage policies offered in the individual market in any state as Health Benefit Plans. Allows certified plans to be offered to individuals in all states without regard to state and local laws respecting mandates for benefits. Requires such plans to cover inpatient hospital services and physicians' surgical and medical services. Requires the Secretary to review the impact of this Act on the availability and purchase of health insurance coverage. Amends the Public Health Service Act to increase the authorization of appropriations for FY2009-FY2013 for grants to states for the creation and operation of qualified high risk health insurance pools. Conditions eligibility for receiving an operating grant on a state submitting to the Secretary evidence-based information on the operation of such pool for purposes of creating best practice guidelines. Requires the Secretary to: (1) recommend and publicly post a list of best practices on the operation of qualified high risk pools; and (2) give a bonus grant to states that demonstrate that their pool was operated in accordance with such best practices.

Date: 2008-06-17
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicare Beneficiary Protection Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and maintain a Medicare plan complaint system. Requires non-network Medicare Advantage private fee-for-service plans to disclose providers that refuse to accept certain enrollees in the plan. Prohibits certain marketing practices with respect to Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug plans, including provision for meals or other items of monetary value, telemarketing, cross-selling, and up-selling. Revises enrollment requirements under Medicare parts C (Medicare+Choice) and D (Voluntary Prescription Drugs). Allows an individual to discontinue an election of a Medicare+Choice plan if enrolled fewer than 60 days. Changes the beginning date of the annual, coordinated election period for such a plan from November 15 to October 1. Requires the Secretary, in establishing a process for the enrollment, disenrollment, termination, and change of enrollment of part D eligible individuals in prescription drug plans, to use rules similar to (and coordinated with) those under the Medicare+Choice program for a continuous open enrollment and disenrollment period for the first three months of the year in which an individual first becomes eligible.

Date: 2008-06-24
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicare Special Needs Plans Extension and Amendments Act of 2008 - Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to extend the authority to restrict enrollment for specialized Medicare Advantage (MA) plans for special needs individuals. Redefines specialized MA plan for special needs individuals to require targeted enrollment of high-risk groups. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to enter into agreements with states to coordinate the financing of specialized MA plans for special needs individuals for enrollees entitled to medical assistance under state Medicaid plans. Establishes additional requirements for dual special needs plans (SNPs) as well as for severe or disabling chronic condition SNPs. Directs the Secretary to evaluate for Congress the adequacy of the MA risk adjustment system for high-risk, high cost beneficiaries. Authorizes the Secretary to modify rules, policies, and procedures under SSA titles XVIII and XIX (Medicaid) to provide for alignment of Medicare and Medicaid requirements for dual eligibles, particularly in the oversight of SNPs serving such dual eligibles. Directs the Secretary to etablish or designate an Office on Medicare/Medicaid Integration to align Medicare and Medicaid policies and procedures and develop tools to support state integration efforts for dual eligible access to Medicare and Medicaid benefits and services.

Date: 2008-06-25
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Small Business Health Care Relief Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small business owners with 50 or fewer employees a refundable tax credit for the payment of a portion of the health care expenses of their employees.

Date: 2008-06-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Mental Health for Heroes' Families Act of 2008 - Removes the requirement that, in order for family members of a veteran being treated in a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital for a non-service-connected disability to be eligible for counseling, training, and mental health services in connection with the veteran's treatment: (1) such services must have been initiated during the veteran's hospitalization; and (2) the continued provision of such services on an outpatient basis is essential to permit the veteran's discharge from the hospital.

Date: 2008-07-08
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Encourage Initiative and Promote Self-Esteem Act of 2008 - Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act to establish special rules for benefits based on waxing and waning medical conditions in qualified disabled individuals.

Date: 2008-07-10
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Social welfare
Expanding Availability of VA Health Care Act of 2008 - Makes eligible for health care under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) patient enrollment system veterans with incomes not exceeding 150% of the maximum for treatment as a low-income family. (Currently, only veterans with incomes not exceeding the maximum for treatment as a low-income family are so eligible.)

Date: 2008-07-10
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Improving Children's Doctor Access Act of 2008 - Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to require annual state SCHIP reports to include information on: (1) the HEDIS (Health Plan Employer Data and Information Set) measure relating to access to primary care practitioners by individuals eligible for child health assistance; and (2) efforts to avoid displacement of private health coverage. Expresses the sense of Congress that states with a state child health plan should utilize consumer satisfaction surveys developed by the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) administered by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, specifically the Getting Needed Care and Getting Care Quickly question components of the CAHPS 4.0H Child Survey, to measure the extent to which individuals eligible for child health assistance under the state plan have access to physicians.

Date: 2008-07-16
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Insurance Coverage Protection Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the Public Health Service Act to prohibit a group health plan from imposing an aggregate lifetime benefit limit of less than: (1) $5 million for the first two plan years; (2) $10 million for the third and fourth plan years; and (3) adjusted amounts based on the consumer price index for subsequent plan years. Excludes from such prohibition a group health plan offered to employees of a small employer, except upon request of the employer for a consistent limit.Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to contract with the Institute of Medicine for a study to determine the number of individuals who have reached the lifetime limitations set forth in this Act.

Date: 2008-07-17
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Reinstatement of Enrollment for Medicaid Eligibility of Disadvantaged Youth (REMEDY) Act - Amends titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to require a state plan to provide for the reinstatement to enrollment for medical assistance and child health assistance upon release from a public institution of an individual youth who was enrolled for such assistance immediately before becoming an inmate of such institution.

Date: 2008-07-24
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Security for All Americans Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act regarding: (1) the physician payment update; (2) geographic cost-of-practice indices (GPCI) floors; (3) annual physical examinations; (4) the Medicare-dependent hospital (MDH) program; (5) the inpatient hospital payment adjustment for low-volume hospitals; and (6) proportional representation of rural area interests on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC). Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a national public information campaign on initial preventive physical examinations for Medicare beneficiaries. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) with respect to rules governing enhanced marketplace pools for small business health plans. Amends the Public Health Service Act to add a new title XXX (Health Care Insurance Marketplace Modernization) under which the Secretary shall promulgate regulations establishing minimum standards for health insurance premium variations and model small group rating rules. Provides for affordable plans and the harmonization of health insurance standards. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction for the qualified health insurance costs of individuals. Amends veterans benefits law to allow an enrolled veteran to elect to receive covered health services through a non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility. Authorizes VA pharmacies to dispense medications to veterans on private practitioner prescriptions. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a program of child care assistance for individuals pursuing advanced nursing degrees. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary to award grants to partnerships of accredited nursing schools and hospitals or health facilities to establish projects to enable a hospital or health facility to retain its staff of experienced nurses while having these individuals become, through an accelerated nursing education program, faculty members of an accredited nursing school. Directs the Secretary to award grants to institutions of higher education that offer: (1) a Registered Nurse (RN) nursing program at the baccalaureate or associate degree level to enable the program to expand its faculty and facilities to accommodate additional RN nursing program students; or (2) a graduate-level nursing program to accommodate advanced practice degrees for RNs or to accommodate students enrolled in a graduate-level nursing program to provide teachers of nursing students. Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to carry out programs to increase the number of nurses within the armed forces. Prescribes requirements for determination of the effective date of active duty for members of a reserve component of the armed forces.

Date: 2008-07-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Veterans Community Health Enhancement Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer funds appropriated for FY2009 for the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts to the Department of Veterans Affairs for the enhancement of services for veterans at community-based outpatient clinics.

Date: 2008-07-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
America's Commitment to Veterans Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer funds appropriated for FY2009 for the Legal Services Corporation and for family planning programs under the Public Health Service Act to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for veterans' medical services.

Date: 2008-07-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Citizenship Should Count for Something Act - Establishes the Citizens Congressional Health Benefits Program to provide comprehensive health insurance coverage to federal elected officials and to all other citizens who are not covered under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). Requires such coverage to be provided in a manner similar to the manner in which coverage has been provided under FEHBP.Eliminates eligibility of the President, Vice-President, and members of Congress for FEHBP.Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to: (1) establish a process for eligible individuals to enroll in qualified health plans; (2) provide for the dissemination of information on such plans; and (3) enter into contracts with entities to offer such plans.Requires qualified health plans to: (1) provide for the same scope and type of comprehensive benefits that have been provided under FEHBP; and (2) meet consumer and patient protections. Prohibits qualified health plans from imposing preexisting condition exclusions or otherwise discriminating against an enrollee based on health status. Requires premiums established for a qualified health plan to be community-rated and not vary based on gender, health status, or other factors.Requires the Director to: (1) establish a process for the collection of premiums owed by enrollees; (2) monitor marketing practices to assure the accuracy of information disseminated and reasonable costs for such marketing; and (3) provide for an annual contribution towards the coverage provided under this Act for eligible individuals.Authorizes the Director to establish a contingency reserve and to impose a premium surcharge to provide financing for such reserve.

Date: 2008-08-01
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA) to repeal provisions relating to: (1) the requirement for certain nonemployer Medicare Advantage (MA) private fee-for-service plans to use contracts with providers; (2) the moratorium on authority to designate other plans as specialized MA plans for special needs individuals; (3) the limitation on out-of-pocket costs for dual eligibles and qualified Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a specialized MA plan for special needs individuals; (4) access to Medicare reasonable cost reimbursement contract plans, especially the prohibition on extension of such a contract in certain circumstances; and (5) the requirement for a study and report to Congress by the Comptroller General of the reasons (if any) why reasonable cost contracts are unable to become MA plans. Restores the corresponding provisions of the Social Security Act as they were before the amendments made by MIPPA.

Date: 2008-08-01
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to extend through April 1, 2009, the approval of specified waivers under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act for the MinnesotaCare Medicaid demonstration project.

Date: 2008-09-09
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Insurance Restrictions and Limitations Clarification Act of 2008 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to exclude a group health plan from prohibitions against limitations or restrictions on the amount, level, extent, or nature of the benefits of coverage for similarly situated individuals enrolled in the plan so long as: (1) such limitations and restrictions are explicit and clear; (2) such limitations and restrictions have been disclosed to the plan sponsor in writing in advance of the point of sale; (3) the plan sponsor provides a description of such limitations and restrictions to participants and beneficiaries in a form that is easily understandable before enrollment; and (4) the plan sponsor and the issuer of the coverage provide such description to the participants and beneficiaries upon their enrollment under the plan at the earliest opportunity that other materials are provided.

Date: 2008-09-16
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Requires, beginning with FY2010, a two-fiscal-year budget authority for the following accounts of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA): (1) Medical Services; (2) Medical Administration; and (3) Medical Facilities. Requires the Comptroller General to conduct a study on the adequacy and accuracy of VA baseline model projections for health care expenditures.

Date: 2008-09-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
RECOVER Act (Restoring Essential Care for Our Veterans for Effective Recovery) - Provides that, if a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facility that would otherwise provide covered medical services to veterans residing in an area for which a major disaster is declared is unable to provide such services for at least 180 days due to such disaster, then the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall contract with one or more non-VA facilities in that area to provide such services to veterans who reside within 150 miles of the VA facility that is unable to provide the services. Makes such requirement inapplicable to a VA facility that is closed, or that the Secretary intends to close, as part of the Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) process. Makes this Act applicable to any VA facility unable to provide covered services on or after August 29, 2005, by reason of a major disaster.

Date: 2008-09-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
SCHIP Plus Act of 2008 - Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to require a state child health plan to provide for the offering of any qualified alternative coverage that a qualified entity seeks to offer targeted low-income children through the plan. Revises requirements with respect to authority for payments to a state for the purchase of family coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan that includes coverage of targeted low-income children. Prohibits a state child health plan from requiring a targeted low-income child to enroll in such coverage in order to obtain child health assistance under this Act. (Thus requires enrollment to be voluntary.) Requires a state health plan to provide at least one opportunity per fiscal year for beneficiaries to switch SCHIP coverage from an employer-sponsored plan to the coverage otherwise available under SCHIP. Requires such plan also to permit beneficiaries to switch coverage under other circumstances, such as change in employment, birth of a child, or change in households, as the Secretary specifies. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require employers that maintain a group health plan in a state that provides child health assistance under SCHIP in the form of premium assistance to give each employee written notice of potential opportunities for such premium assistance for health coverage of the employee's dependents.

Date: 2008-09-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Safeguarding Our Hospitals' Futures Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in the case of discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2008, to continue to apply budget neutrality on a national basis in the calculation of the urban hospital wage floor for discharges occurring during FY2008 under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (through a uniform, national adjustment to the area wage index).

Date: 2008-09-18
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Health Insurance Stability Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a refundable tax credit for amounts paid to continue health care coverage for the taxpayer, the taxpayer's spouse, and dependents under the applicable continuation provisions of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). Limits the amount of such credit and disqualifies taxpayers who, in any month, have employer-provided coverage, are covered under Medicare, Medicaid, or the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act, or are imprisoned. Denies such credit to individuals who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents or who are dependents of a taxpayer. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a program for advancing payments of credit amounts to health insurance providers of the taxpayer.

Date: 2008-09-23
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce from 7.5 to 2.5% the amount of adjusted gross income over which a taxpayer's medical expenses are fully deductible.

Date: 2008-09-23
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require state Medicaid plans to continue to cover non-emergency transportation to medically necessary services.

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Medicare Beneficiary Freedom to Choose Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) to revise requirements for the use of private contracts by Medicare beneficiaries under which no Medicare claims shall be made. Requires any such contract to be in writing and signed by the Medicare beneficiary. Allows individuals to choose to opt out of the Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance), and makes them eligible for health savings accounts.

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
American Health Care Access Improvement, Portability, and Cost Reduction Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow qualified primary care physicians or qualified nurse practitioners a tax credit of $1,000 for each month such providers provide services in a health professional shortage area.Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to make changes to the conversion factor for FY2010 for physicians Medicare payments.Allows a refundable tax credit for qualified health insurance coverage. Provides for advance payment of such credit.Revises IRC provisions relating to health savings accounts (HSAs) to: (1) allow HSAs to incorporate flexible spending and health reimbursement arrangements; (2) increase the annual HSA contribution limitation; (3) permit the use of HSAs to purchase health insurance; (4) allow the payment of certain medical expenses incurred before the establishment of an HSA; (5) allow veterans eligible for service-connected disability benefits to establish an HSA; and (6) allow spouses to make increased catch-up contributions to a single HSA.Requires the inclusion of education information about advance directives in the annual notice of Medicare benefits sent to eligible individuals.Revises provisions concerning Medicare+Choice private fee-for-service plans related to access standards under the plans and utilization.

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Expanding Availability of VA Health Care Act of 2008 - Makes eligible for health care under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) patient enrollment system veterans with incomes not exceeding 200% of the maximum for treatment as a low-income family. (Currently, only veterans with incomes not exceeding the maximum for treatment as a low-income family are so eligible.)

Date: 2008-09-26
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2008 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health the World Trade Center Health Program (WTC program) to provide: (1) medical monitoring and treatment benefits to eligible emergency responders and recovery and cleanup workers who responded to the World Trade Center terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001; and (2) screening and treatment benefits to residents and other building occupants and area workers who were directly impacted and adversely affected by such attacks. Requires the WTC program administrator to: (1) implement a quality assurance program; (2) establish the WTC Health Program Scientific/Technical Advisory Committee; (3) establish the WTC Responders Steering Committee and the WTC Community Program Steering Committee; (4) provide for education and outreach on services under the WTC program; (5) provide for the uniform collection of data related to WTC-related health conditions; (6) conduct research on physical and mental health conditions that may be related to the September 11 terrorist attacks; and (7) extend and expand arrangements with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to provide for the World Trade Center Health Registry. Authorizes the administrator to make grants to the Department to address mental health needs relating to the terrorist attacks.Amends the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act to: (1) make individuals eligible for compensation under the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 for harm as a result of debris removal; and (2) extend the deadline for making a claim for compensation.Sets forth provisions governing the application of the economic substance doctrine to transactions.

Date: 2008-09-27
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to limit Medicare Advantage payment rate increases (except for Programs of All-inclusive Care for Elderly (PACE)) to 2% per year until parity is achieved with the Medicare fee-for-service capitation rate.

Date: 2008-09-28
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Preserving Access to Healthcare (PATH) Act of 2008 - Declares that between October 1, 2008, and March 31, 2009, specified regulations regarding the formula for determining the federal rate for inpatient hospital capital-related costs under the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) shall apply without the mandatory phase out of the indirect medical education adjustment factor. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to delay for six months following enactment of this Act any implementation of the Medicaid outpatient hospital services regulation proposed on September 28, 2007. Prohibits the Secretary from phasing out or eliminating the Medicare hospice wage index budget neutrality adjustment factor before April 1, 2009. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and upon the request of the state of California, to extend approval, and full federal financial participation, of the state's Medicaid family planning demonstration project until June 30, 2009, under the eligibility requirements and processes that were in place before the project's first extension period. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to increase funding for the Medicare Improvement Fund.

Date: 2008-10-02
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Affordability in the Individual Market Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the payment of insurance premiums for high deductible health plans from health savings accounts.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Medicaid Advanced Practice Nurses and Physician Assistants Access Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the state option to include nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, and physician assistants as primary care case managers. Specifies as primary care case managers any nurse practitioner, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant that provides primary care case management services under a primary care case management contract.Revises the coverage of certain nurse practitioner services under the Medicaid fee-for-service program to remove the specification of certified pediatric nurse practitioner and certified family nurse practitioner in order to extend such coverage to services furnished by a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist. Includes nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, and certified registered nurse anesthetists in the mix of service providers which Medicaid managed care organizations are required to maintain.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Medicare Cost Contract Extension and Refinement Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) extend the period reasonable cost reimbursement contracts under Medicare can remain in the market, and the period during which they can be modified to expand their service area; and (2) apply to extended or renewed reasonable cost contracts certain requirements under Medicare part C (Medicare Advantage).

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Preserving Medicare for All Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to repeal the prohibition against interference by the Secretary of Health and Human Services with the negotiations between drug manufacturers and pharmacies and prescription drug plan sponsors. Grants the Secretary authority to negotiate contracts with manufacturers of covered part D drugs in order to ensure that beneficiaries enrolled under prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plans (MA-PD plans) pay the lowest possible price. Allows the Medicare part D eligible individual an alternative to the current choice of coverage in at least two qualifying plans in the area in which the individual resides. Allows such an individual to choose enrollment in a nationwide prescription drug plan offered by the Secretary (to replace enrollment in a fallback prescription drug plan in any case in which such plans are not available). Directs the Secretary, through the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, to: (1) take necessary steps to qualify and serve as a prescription drug plan sponsor; and (2) offer a prescription drug plan that offers basic prescription drug coverage throughout the United States, with a $35 premium for 2008, adjusted annually thereafter. Requires such a plan to be in addition to, and not in lieu of, other prescription drug plans offered.Provides for full reimbursement to employers for the cost of qualified retiree drug coverage, and permits their costs to count towards senior's catastrophic limits.Abolishes the comparative cost adjustment program.Eliminates the MA Regional Plan Stabilization Fund.Repeals certain cost containment requirements. Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for the removal of exclusion of benzodiazepines from required coverage under the Medicare prescription drug program.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act (SSA), as amended by the National Institutes of Health Reform Act of 2006, to allow qualifying states to use all or any portion (currently, up to 20%) of their allotments under SCHIP for certain Medicaid (SSA title XIX) expenditures. Requires qualifying states to implement at least three of the following policies and procedures: (1) a simplified application process; (2) elimination of any asset test; (3) twelve-month continuous eligibility; and (4) easy access to enrollment staff.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Amends the Veterans' Housing Opportunity and Benefits Improvement Act of 2006 to remove the requirement that, in order to qualify for retroactive benefits from traumatic injury protection coverage under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance program during the period beginning on October 7, 2001, and ending on November 30, 2005, the Secretary of the military department concerned must determine that the loss was a direct result of a traumatic injury incurred in the theater of operations for Operations Enduring Freedom or Iraqi Freedom (thus including traumatic injury incurred while performing other types of military service during such period under such coverage).

Date: 2007-01-09
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Rural Physicians Relief Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain primary health services providers (i.e., physicians and licensed mental health care practitioners) a tax credit of $1,000 for each month such providers provide medical care to rural patients in certain sparsely populated areas of the United States.

Date: 2007-01-12
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Provides that the preferred rate of release of water from Yellowtail Dam located in Big Horn County, Montana, shall be not less than 2,500 cubic feet of water per second, with a minimum rate of 1,500 cubic feet of water per second. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to waive that minimum rate in case of emergency or if water levels in Bighorn Lake imminently preclude power generation at Yellowtail Dam. Includes the maintenance of a healthy fishery on the portion of the Bighorn River located downstream from the Yellowtail Dam among the purposes for which the Yellowtail Unit of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program is authorized. Directs the Secretary to ensure that any reclamation project carried out within the Bighorn River watershed is coordinated with other reclamation projects within the watershed.

Date: 2007-01-16
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Water resources development
Extends from two years to five years following discharge or release the eligibility period for certain veterans who served in combat after the Persian Gulf War to receive hospital care, medical services, or nursing home care provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, notwithstanding a lack of evidence to conclude that their condition is attributable to such service.

Date: 2007-01-24
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Tax Equity and Affordability Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow individual taxpayers a refundable tax credit for health insurance costs paid for the benefit of the taxpayer, the taxpayer's spouse, and dependents; (2) require business taxpayers who receive payments for certain employee health insurance coverage to file informational returns; (3) direct the Secretary of the Treasury to make advance payments of health insurance tax credit amounts to health insurance providers; and (4) limit the tax exclusion for employer-provided health care coverage.

Date: 2007-01-25
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Children's Health Equity Technical Amendments Act of 2007 - Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to permit qualifying states to use up to 20% of their SCHIP allotment for any fiscal year (currently, only for FY1998-FY2007) for certain Medicaid expenditures for individuals under age 19 whose family income exceeds 150% of the poverty line. Revises the eligibility requirements for such allowable expenditures to reduce the family income threshold from a minimum of 150% of the poverty line to a minimum of 125% of the poverty line.

Date: 2007-01-30
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Advance Directives Improvement and Education Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for Medicare coverage of end-of-life planning and consultations as part of an initial preventive physical examination. Requires a service provider, Medicare Advantage organization, or prepaid or eligible organization to give effect to an advance directive executed outside the state in which it is presented, even one that does not appear to meet the formalities of execution, form, or language required by the state in which it is presented, to the same extent as such provider or organization would give effect to an advanced directive that meets such requirements. Permits a provider or organization to decline to honor such a directive if it can be reasonably demonstrated that it is not an authentic expression of the individual's wishes concerning his or her health care. Makes such advance directive requirements applicable under SSA title XIX (Medicaid). Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, directly or through grants, to: (1) conduct a national education campaign to raise public awareness of the importance of planning for care near the end of life; and (2) provide for a national, toll-free information clearinghouse, as well as clearinghouses that the public may access to find out about state-specific information regarding advance directives and end-of-life decisions. Requires the General Accounting Office to study and report to Congress on the feasibility of a national registry for advanced directives.

Date: 2007-01-31
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Preserving Patient Access to Inpatient Rehabilitation Hospitals Act of 2007 - Amends the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 to revise the classification criterion used to determine whether a hospital or hospital unit is an inpatient rehabilitation facility under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Eliminates the current schedule of applicable percentages. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, instead, to require in the classification criterion a compliance rate no greater than the 60% compliance rate that became effective for cost reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2005. Requires the Secretary, for cost reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2007, to include patients with comorbidity in the inpatient population that counts towards such 60% compliance rate. Requires the Secretary, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, fiscal intermediaries, Medicare administrative contractors, recovery audit contractors, and other government agents to use and apply the criteria established in HCFA Ruling 85-2, as issued on July 31, 1985, as the sole standard for determining the medical necessity of services provided by inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and units to beneficiaries under the Medicare program.

Date: 2007-02-12
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Withdraws the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade relations) from the products of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Allows the extension of such treatment to the products of that country, subsequently, only in accordance with the provisions of the Trade Act of 1974 as in effect with respect to such products on the day before the effective date of PRC accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Deems the extension of waiver authority in effect before such date not to have expired, and to continue in effect until 90 days after enactment of this Act.

Date: 2007-02-13
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Foreign trade and international finance
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit: (1) federal civilian and military retirees to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis (i.e., exclude premiums from gross income); and (2) a tax deduction (available to itemizers and nonitemizers) for TRICARE supplemental premiums or enrollment fees. Directs the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Secretary of Defense to ensure that the option of paying FEHBP and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis is available to federal civilian and military retirees for the first open enrollment period beginning not less than 90 days after the enactment of this Act.

Date: 2007-03-06
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Taxation
Community Choice Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require state Medicaid plan coverage of community-based attendant services and supports for certain Medicaid-eligible individuals. Outlines requirements for: (1) an enhanced federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for ongoing activities of early coverage states that enhance and promote the use of community-based attendant services and supports; and (2) increased federal financial participation for certain expenditures incurred by the state for the provision of such services and supports. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) award grants to eligible states which have established a Consumer Task Force to assist the state in its development of real choice systems change initiatives; and (2) conduct a demonstration project for the purpose of evaluating service coordination and cost-sharing approaches with respect to the provision of community-based services and supports to dually eligible individuals.

Date: 2007-03-07
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Health
Veterans Health Care Empowerment Act of 2007 - Allows any veteran with a service-connected disability to receive hospital care or medical services for any condition at any hospital or medical facility or from any medical provider eligible to receive payments under either Medicare or the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense [DOD] managed health care program). Requires the cost of such care and services to be borne by the United States.

Date: 2007-03-08
Topic: Health (Insurance)
Subject: Armed forces and national security