PEAKS Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1960 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1960

  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for the 
  continued designation of hospitals that met mountainous terrain or 
 secondary roads distance requirement as critical access hospitals and 
  to modify distance requirements for ambulance services furnished by 
                       critical access hospitals.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 5, 2025

Mrs. Capito (for herself, Mr. Padilla, Mr. Justice, Mr. Schiff, and Mr. 
   Barrasso) 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 provide for the 
  continued designation of hospitals that met mountainous terrain or 
 secondary roads distance requirement as critical access hospitals and 
  to modify distance requirements for ambulance services furnished by 
                       critical access hospitals.

    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 ``Preserving Emergency Access in Key 
Sites Act'' or the ``PEAKS Act''.

SEC. 2. TREATMENT OF HOSPITALS THAT MET MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OR 
              SECONDARY ROADS DISTANCE REQUIREMENT FOR DESIGNATION AS 
              CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITAL.

    Section 1820(h) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i-4(h)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Treatment of hospitals that met mountainous terrain 
        or secondary roads distance requirement for designation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In the case of a hospital 
                described in subparagraph (B), the hospital shall be 
                deemed to meet the 15-mile distance requirement for 
                mountainous terrain or secondary roads described in 
                subsection (c)(2)(B)(i)(I) on or after January 1, 2026.
                    ``(B) Hospital described.--A hospital described in 
                this subparagraph is a hospital that--
                            ``(i) as of the date of enactment of this 
                        paragraph, is designated as a critical access 
                        hospital;
                            ``(ii) demonstrates (in a manner determined 
                        by the Secretary) that the hospital met the 15-
                        mile distance requirement for mountainous 
                        terrain or secondary roads described in 
                        subsection (c)(2)(B)(i)(I) as of the hospital's 
                        last certification as a critical access 
                        hospital; and
                            ``(iii) after such date of enactment, has a 
                        new hospital or other facility described in 
                        this subsection located within 10-15 miles of 
                        the hospital.
                    ``(C) Regulations.--Not later than 1 year after the 
                date of enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary 
                shall promulgate regulations to carry out this 
                paragraph.''.

SEC. 3. MODIFICATION OF DISTANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR AMBULANCE SERVICES 
              FURNISHED BY CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITALS.

    Section 1834(l)(8) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395m(l)(8)) is amended, in the flush matter following subparagraph 
(B), by inserting ``(or, for such services furnished on or after 
January 1, 2026, in the case of mountainous terrain or in areas with 
only secondary roads available, a 15-mile drive)'' after ``35-mile 
drive''.
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