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, 2006.
Requires the Secretary, for cost reporting periods beginning on or after July 1, 2008, to include patients with comorbidity in the inpatient population that counts towards such 60% compliance rate.
Requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and Medicare 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 servivces provided by inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and units to Medicare beneficiaries.
Directs the Secretary to report to specified congressional committees: (1) an examination of the impact of the 75% rule on the Medicare program, and specifically on Medicare beneficiaries; and (2) alternatives to the 75% rule policy for determining exclusion criteria for inpatient rehabilitation hospital and unit designation under the Medicare program.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1459 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1459
To improve Medicare beneficiary access by extending the 60 percent
compliance threshold used to determine whether a hospital or unit of a
hospital is an inpatient rehabilitation facility.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 9, 2007
Mr. Tanner (for himself, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Hulshof, Mr. LoBiondo, Mrs.
Capps, Mrs. Maloney of New York, Mr. Engel, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Cummings,
Mr. Altmire, Mr. Fossella, Mr. Ehlers, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Mr.
McHugh, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. Ackerman, Ms. Woolsey, Mr. English of
Pennsylvania, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Higgins, Mr. Lincoln Davis of Tennessee,
Mr. Murtha, Mr. Platts, Mr. Saxton, Mr. Jefferson, Ms. Schwartz, Mr.
Hall of Texas, Mr. Neal of Massachusetts, Mr. Gerlach, Mr. Gene Green
of Texas, Mr. Gordon of Tennessee, Mr. Holden, Ms. Berkley, Mr. Ortiz,
Mr. Israel, Mr. Wamp, Mr. Ferguson, Mr. Peterson of Pennsylvania, Mr.
Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Berry, Mr. Moore of Kansas, Mr. Sessions, Mr.
Udall of Colorado, Mr. Holt, Mr. Walsh of New York, Mr. Reynolds, Mr.
McGovern, Mr. Porter, Mr. LaHood, Mr. Payne, Mr. Goode, Mr. Bishop of
New York, Mr. Shuster, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Davis of Alabama, Mr.
Gohmert, Mr. Dent, Mr. Roskam, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Meehan,
Mr. Capuano, Mr. Rogers of Alabama, Mr. Lewis of Kentucky, Mr. Thompson
of California, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Abercrombie, Mr. Tim Murphy of
Pennsylvania, Mr. Hodes, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Rahall, Mr. Alexander, Mr.
Garrett of New Jersey, Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania, Mr. Boyd of Florida,
Mr. Reyes, Mr. King of New York, Mr. Pascrell, Ms. Granger, Mr.
Everett, Mr. Aderholt, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Bachus, Mr. Clay, and Mr.
Sam Johnson of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve Medicare beneficiary access by extending the 60 percent
compliance threshold used to determine whether a hospital or unit of a
hospital is an inpatient rehabilitation facility.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. EXTENDED PHASE-IN OF THE INPATIENT REHABILITATION FACILITY
CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA.
(a) In General.--Section 5005 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ``apply the applicable
percent specified in subsection (b)'' and inserting ``require a
compliance rate that is no greater than the 60 percent
compliance rate that became effective for cost reporting
periods beginning on or after July 1, 2006''; and
(2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
``(b) Continued Use of Comorbidities.--For cost reporting periods
beginning on or after July 1, 2008, the Secretary shall include
patients with comorbidities as described in section 412.23(b)(2)(i) of
title 42, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect as of January 1,
2007), in the inpatient population that counts towards the percent
specified in subsection (a).''.
(b) Medical Necessity Criteria for Beneficiaries Served in
Rehabilitation Hospitals and Units.--The Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services and Medicare fiscal intermediaries, Medicare
administrative contractors, recovery audit contractors, and other
government agents shall use and apply the criteria established in HCFA
Ruling 85-2, as issued on July 31, 1985 (50 Fed. Reg. 31040), as the
sole standard for determining the medical necessity of services
provided by inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and units to Medicare
beneficiaries under title XVIII of the Social Security Act.
SEC. 2. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CLASSIFYING INPATIENT REHABILITATION
HOSPITALS AND UNITS.
(a) Report to Congress.--Not later than 12 months after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services,
in consultation with physicians, administrators of inpatient
rehabilitation and acute care hospitals, Medicare beneficiaries, and
trade organizations representing inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and
units, shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate a report
that includes--
(1) an examination of the impact of the 75 percent rule on
the Medicare program and the specific impact of the rule on
Medicare beneficiaries; and
(2) alternatives to the 75 percent rule policy for
determining exclusion criteria for inpatient rehabilitation
hospital and unit designation under the Medicare program,
including determining clinical appropriateness of inpatient
rehabilitation hospital and unit admissions, and including
alternative criteria based solely on a measure of a patient's
functional status which is independent of diagnosis.
For the purposes of this section, the term ``75 percent rule'' means
the requirement of section 412.23(b)(2) of title 42, Code of Federal
Regulations, that 75 percent of the patients of a rehabilitation
hospital or converted rehabilitation unit are in 1 or more of 13 listed
treatment categories.
(b) Considerations.--In developing the report described in
subsection (a), the Secretary shall include the following:
(1) The effect of the 75 percent rule on access to
inpatient hospital rehabilitation care by Medicare
beneficiaries and the effectiveness of care available to such
beneficiaries in other health care settings.
(2) A comparative analysis of the overall Medicare system
costs, including Medicare expenditures to acute care hospitals,
home health agencies, skilled nursing facilities, and long-term
care hospitals, resulting from implementation of the 75 percent
rule.
(3) A analysis that compares the quality, cost, and patient
outcomes of inpatient rehabilitation services among different
post-acute care settings, including whether the Medicare
program and Medicare beneficiaries may incur higher costs of
care for the entire episode of illness because of factors such
as--
(A) readmissions to acute care hospitals that could
have been avoided absent the 75 percent rule; or
(B) extended lengths of stay in post-acute settings
other than a rehabilitation hospital or unit because
beneficiaries were denied access to care in such a
hospital or unit due to the 75 percent rule.
SEC. 3. TECHNICAL CORRECTION FOR INPATIENT REHABILITATION HOSPITALS AND
UNITS NOMENCLATURE.
(a) In General.--Section 1886(j) of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 1395ww(j)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``(in this subsection
referred to as a `rehabilitation facility'), other than a
facility'' and inserting ``other than a hospital or unit'';
(2) by striking ``rehabilitation facility'' and
``facility'' and inserting ``inpatient rehabilitation hospital
or a rehabilitation unit'' and ``hospital or unit'',
respectively, each place it appears;
(3) by striking ``rehabilitation facilities'' and inserting
``inpatient rehabilitation hospitals or rehabilitation units''
each place it appears; and
(4) in paragraph (6), by striking ``rehabilitation
facilities' costs'' and inserting ``costs of inpatient
rehabilitation hospitals or rehabilitation units''.
(b) Use of the Term ``IRH/U''.--The Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall, under regulation and Medicare program guidance, use the
term ``inpatient rehabilitation hospital/unit'' or ``IRH/U'' to refer
to entities receiving payment for inpatient rehabilitation services
under section 1886(j) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(j)).
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
Sections 1 and 3 of this Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007, and
section 2 shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
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