Medicare Mental Health Copayment Equity Act of 2003

Medicare Mental Health Copayment Equity Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for a gradual reduction of copayment rates for outpatient psychiatric services under the Medicare program (from 50 percent to the standard 20 percent) by 2009.

[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 853 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 853

     To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to eliminate 
  discriminatory copayment rates for outpatient psychiatric services 
                      under the medicare program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 10, 2003

 Ms. Snowe (for herself and Mr. Kerry) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to eliminate 
  discriminatory copayment rates for outpatient psychiatric services 
                      under the medicare program.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Medicare Mental Health Copayment 
Equity Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATORY COPAYMENT RATES FOR MEDICARE 
              OUTPATIENT PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES.

    Section 1833(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395l(c)) is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(c)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, with 
respect to expenses incurred in a calendar year in connection with the 
treatment of mental, psychoneurotic, and personality disorders of an 
individual who is not an inpatient of a hospital at the time such 
expenses are incurred, there shall be considered as incurred expenses 
for purposes of subsections (a) and (b)--
            ``(A) for expenses incurred in any year before 2004, only 
        62\1/2\ percent of such expenses;
            ``(B) for expenses incurred in 2004, only 68\3/4\ percent 
        of such expenses;
            ``(C) for expenses incurred in 2005, only 75 percent of 
        such expenses;
            ``(D) for expenses incurred in 2006, only 81\1/4\ percent 
        of such expenses;
            ``(E) for expenses incurred in 2007, only 87\1/2\ percent 
        of such expenses;
            ``(F) for expenses incurred in 2008, only 93\3/4\ percent 
        of such expenses; and
            ``(G) for expenses incurred in 2009 or any subsequent year, 
        100 percent of such expenses.
    ``(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term `treatment' does 
not include brief office visits (as defined by the Secretary) for the 
sole purpose of monitoring or changing drug prescriptions used in the 
treatment of such disorders or partial hospitalization services that 
are not directly provided by a physician.''.
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