[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 942 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 942

  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permit separate 
    payment to be made under part B of the medicare program for the 
 interpretation of electrocardiograms performed during an office visit.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 17, 1993

Mr. Cardin introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to 
        the Committees on Ways and Means and Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permit separate 
    payment to be made under part B of the medicare program for the 
 interpretation of electrocardiograms performed during an office visit.

    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 ``Medicare EKG Payment Restoration Act 
of 1993''.

SEC. 2. SEPARATE PAYMENT FOR INTERPRETATION OF ELECTROCARDIOGRAMS.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (3) of section 1848(b) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-4(b)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(3) Treatment of interpretation of electrocardiograms.--
        The Secretary--
                    ``(A) shall make separate payment under this 
                section for the interpretation of electrocardiograms 
                performed or ordered to be performed as part of or in 
                conjunction with a visit to or a consultation with a 
                physician, and
                    ``(B) shall adjust the relative values established 
                for visits and consultations under subsection (c) so as 
                not to include relative value units for interpretations 
                of electrocardiograms in the relative value for visits 
                and consultations.''.
    (b) Assuring Budget Neutrality.--Section 1848(c)(2) of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395w-4(c)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
                    ``(E) Budget neutrality adjustments.--The 
                Secretary--
                            ``(i) shall reduce the relative values for 
                        all services (other than anesthesia services) 
                        established under this paragraph (and, in the 
                        case of anesthesia services, the conversion 
                        factor established by the Secretary for such 
                        services) by such percentage as the Secretary 
                        determines to be necessary so that, beginning 
                        in 1996, the amendment made by section 2(a) of 
                        the Medicare EKG Payment Restoration Act of 
                        1993 would not result in expenditures under 
                        this section that exceed the amount of such 
                        expenditures that would have been made if such 
                        amendment had not been made, and
                            ``(ii) shall reduce the amounts determined 
                        under subsection (a)(2)(B)(i)(I) by such 
                        percentage as the Secretary determines to be 
                        required to assure that, taking into account 
                        the reductions made under clause (i), the 
                        amendment made by section 2(a) of the Medicare 
                        EKG Payment Restoration Act of 1993 would not 
                        result in expenditures under this section in 
                        1993 that exceed the amount of such 
                        expenditures that would have been made if such 
                        amendment had not been made.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--Section 1848 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395w-4) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2)(B)(i)(I), by inserting ``and as 
        adjusted under subsection (c)(2)(E)(ii)'' after ``for 1993'';
            (2) in subsection (c)(2)(A)(i), by adding at the end the 
        following: ``Such relative values are subject to adjustment 
        under subparagraph (E)(i).''; and
            (3) in subsection (i)(1)(B), by adding at the end 
        ``including adjustments under subsection (c)(2)(E),''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to services furnished on or after first day of the fourth month 
beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

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