No official summary available for this bill.
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3439 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3439
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for outreach
and education to Medicare beneficiaries to simplify access to
information for family caregivers through 1-800-MEDICARE, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 11, 2025
Mr. Tillis (for himself, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Cassidy, Ms. Murkowski, Ms.
Smith, and Ms. Baldwin) 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 outreach
and education to Medicare beneficiaries to simplify access to
information for family caregivers through 1-800-MEDICARE, and for other
purposes.
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 ``Connecting Caregivers to Medicare
Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. OUTREACH AND EDUCATION TO MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES TO SIMPLIFY
ACCESS TO INFORMATION FOR FAMILY CAREGIVERS THROUGH 1-
800-MEDICARE.
Section 1804 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395b-2) is
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(e)(1) The Secretary shall provide for such outreach and
education activities as are necessary, including as described in
paragraph (2), to inform individuals entitled to benefits under part A
or enrolled under part B and individuals applying for benefits under
part A or enrolling under part B about the option to authorize a family
caregiver (as defined in paragraph (8)(A)) of such an individual to
access the personal health information of such individual through the
toll-free 1-800-MEDICARE telephone number maintained by the Secretary
under subsection (b) if such individual completes and submits a
specified family caregiver information access authorization form (as
defined in paragraph (8)(B)) authorizing such access by such family
caregiver to such information.
``(2) The outreach and education activities under paragraph (1)
shall include the following:
``(A) Outreach and education efforts to provide information
about the option described in paragraph (1) to individuals
described in such paragraph, to providers of services and
suppliers furnishing services to such individuals, to family
caregivers, and to other appropriate entities specified by the
Secretary.
``(B) Outreach and education efforts to inform such
individuals, providers of services and suppliers, family
caregivers, and other appropriate entities of best practices
identified pursuant to paragraph (4) to protect such
individuals from fraudulent practices described in such
paragraph.
``(C) Outreach and education efforts to individuals
described in paragraph (1) to inform such individuals of all
existing reporting mechanisms for suspected Medicare fraud.
``(D) The inclusion of information about the option
described in paragraph (1), and best practices identified
pursuant to paragraph (4), in a manner that is prominent,
easily accessible, and readily understandable--
``(i) in the notice under subsection (a);
``(ii) through the Medicare.gov website or a
successor website;
``(iii) through other efforts specifically
conducted for individuals enrolled in a Medicare
Advantage plan under part C; and
``(iv) through other platforms or methods specified
by the Secretary, such as social media.
``(E) The inclusion, in a manner that is prominent, easily
accessible, and readily understandable, of the specified family
caregiver information access authorization form in the notice
under subsection (a), through--
``(i) the website described in subparagraph
(D)(ii); and
``(ii) other efforts described in subparagraph
(D)(iii).
``(F) Education efforts to train operators of 1-800-
MEDICARE on providing appropriate resources and information to
family caregivers.
``(3) Information about the option described in paragraph (1)
provided through efforts described in paragraph (2) shall include a
notification clarifying that such option is available to all
individuals described in paragraph (1) regardless of whether such
individuals are enrolled for the original Medicare fee-for-service
option under part A or B or enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan.
``(4) Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this
subsection, the Secretary, acting through the Office of the Inspector
General of the Department of Health and Human Services, shall submit to
Congress and make publicly available best practices to protect
individuals described in paragraph (1) against fraud relating to
inappropriately accessing or using the personal health information of
such individuals, including best practices for educating beneficiaries
on fraud reporting mechanisms, and recommendations to improve timely
agency investigation of beneficiary fraud reports. The Secretary shall
provide for, as the Secretary determines appropriate, separate best
practices for individuals described in paragraph (1), family
caregivers, providers of services and suppliers, and other entities
specified by the Secretary.
``(5) The Secretary shall provide for opportunities (such as
through surveys) for family caregivers to provide feedback to the
Secretary on experiences accessing information through 1-800-MEDICARE
and on the outreach and education activities conducted under this
subsection.
``(6) The outreach and education activities conducted under this
subsection, and the specified family caregiver information access
authorization form, shall be made available in non-English languages,
as specified by the Secretary.
``(7) In conducting the outreach and education activities under
this subsection, the Secretary shall, to the greatest extent
practicable, coordinate such activities with activities carried out
through State health insurance assistance programs or the
Administration for Community Living.
``(8) For purposes of this subsection:
``(A) The term `family caregiver' has the meaning given
such term in section 2 of the Recognize, Assist, Include,
Support, and Engage Family Caregivers Act of 2017, and includes
such other individuals as specified by the Secretary.
``(B) The term `specified family caregiver information
access authorization form' means the CMS-10106 form or any
successor form.''.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
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