FAST Act of 2017

Furthering Access to Stroke Telemedicine Act of 2017 or the FAST Act of 2017

(Sec. 2) This bill specifies that, under Medicare, telehealth services include telehealth-eligible stroke services provided to an individual soon after the onset of acute-stroke symptoms. Certain originating-site requirements applicable to telehealth services under Medicare shall not apply with respect to such stroke services.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1148 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1148

  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand access to 
    telehealth-eligible stroke services under the Medicare program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 16, 2017

Mr. Griffith (for himself, Mrs. Beatty, Mr. Carter of Georgia, Mr. Ryan 
of Ohio, Mr. Collins of New York, Mr. Roe of Tennessee, Mr. Bilirakis, 
Mr. Abraham, Mr. Babin, Mr. Turner, and Mr. Johnson of Ohio) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
  Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to expand access to 
    telehealth-eligible stroke 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 ``Furthering Access to Stroke 
Telemedicine Act of 2017'' or the ``FAST Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. EXPANDING ACCESS TO TELEHEALTH-ELIGIBLE STROKE SERVICES UNDER 
              THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Section 1834(m)(4) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395m(m)(4)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (C)--
                    (A) in clause (i), by striking ``The term'' and 
                inserting ``Subject to clause (iii), the term''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new clause:
                            ``(iii) Telehealth-eligible stroke 
                        services.--With respect to telehealth-eligible 
                        stroke services, the term `originating site' 
                        means any hospital, or any mobile unit equipped 
                        with the ability to evaluate possible stroke 
                        patients while being transported to a hospital, 
                        at which the eligible telehealth individual is 
                        located at the time the service is furnished 
                        via a telecommunications system, regardless of 
                        where the hospital or mobile unit is 
                        located.'';
            (2) in subparagraph (F)(i) by inserting ``telehealth-
        eligible stroke services,'' after ``Secretary)),''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(G) Telehealth-eligible stroke services.--The 
                term `telehealth-eligible stroke services' means 
                services that are--
                            ``(i) related to the diagnosis, evaluation, 
                        or treatment of symptoms in an individual of an 
                        acute stroke; and
                            ``(ii) provided to such individual not 
                        later than four and a half hours (or such other 
                        clinically appropriate amount of time as is 
                        determined by the Secretary) after the onset of 
                        such symptoms with respect to such 
                        individual.''.
    (b) No Originating Site Facility Fee for New Sites.--Section 
1834(m)(2)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(m)(2)(B)) is 
amended, in the matter preceding clause (i), by inserting ``(other than 
an originating site that is only described in clause (iii) of paragraph 
(4)(C), and does not meet the requirement for an originating site under 
clause (i) of such paragraph)'' after ``the originating site''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to services furnished on or after the date that is 18 months 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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