Critical Access Hospital Relief Act of 2014

Critical Access Hospital Relief Act of 2014 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the 96-hour physician certification requirement for inpatient critical access hospital services under which a physician must certify that a patient may reasonably be expected to be discharged or transferred to a hospital within 96 hours after admission to the critical access hospital.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2037 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2037

 To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to remove the 96-hour 
   physician certification requirement for inpatient critical access 
                           hospital services.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 24, 2014

Mr. Roberts (for himself, Mr. Tester, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Enzi, 
 Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Moran, Mr. Franken, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Barrasso, Mrs. 
 Fischer, Ms. Collins, Mr. Johanns, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Hoeven, and Mr. 
Kirk) 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 remove the 96-hour 
   physician certification requirement for inpatient critical access 
                           hospital services.

    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 ``Critical Access Hospital Relief Act 
of 2014''.

SEC. 2. REMOVING MEDICARE 96-HOUR PHYSICIAN CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT 
              FOR INPATIENT CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITAL SERVICES.

    (a) In General.--Section 1814(a) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395f(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (6), by adding ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (7), at the end of subparagraph (D)(ii), 
        by striking ``and'' and inserting a period; and
            (3) by striking paragraph (8).
    (b) Application.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply 
with respect to items and services furnished on or after January 1, 
2014.
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