[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2246 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2246

 To amend the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 to prohibit the Secretary of 
 Health and Human Services to require the collection of data from home 
 health agencies furnishing services under the Medicare Program under 
 the OASIS data collection program from non-Medicare patients, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 16, 1999

 Mr. Ryun of Kansas (for himself, Mr. Moran of Kansas, Mr. Tiahrt, Mr. 
Nethercutt, Mr. Stearns, Mr. Hoekstra, Mr. Rahall, Mr. Hostettler, Mr. 
Peterson of Pennsylvania, Ms. Millender-McDonald, Mr. Kolbe, Mr. Paul, 
 Mrs. Myrick, Mr. Barrett of Nebraska, and Mr. Markey) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, 
   and in addition to the Committee on Commerce, 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 the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 to prohibit the Secretary of 
 Health and Human Services to require the collection of data from home 
 health agencies furnishing services under the Medicare Program under 
 the OASIS data collection program from non-Medicare patients, 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 ``Medicare Home Health Care Relief Act 
of 1999''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON OASIS DATA COLLECTION TO MEDICARE PATIENT DATA.

    (a) In General.--Effective as if included in the enactment of the 
Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-33), section 4602(e) of 
such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395fff note) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new sentence: ``Notwithstanding any provision of section 1891 
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395bbb) to the contrary, the 
Secretary may only require the submission of additional information 
under this subsection with respect to individuals who are entitled to 
benefits under part A, or enrolled under part B, or both, of title 
XVIII of such Act.''.
    (b) Report to Congress.--By not later than October 1, 2001, the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services shall submit to Congress a 
report on the collection of data from home health agencies on patients 
of the agencies that includes the following:
            (1) Recommendations for such legislative and administrative 
        actions that the Secretary determines is appropriate with 
        respect to the collection of information by the Secretary from 
        medicare home health agencies on patients of such agencies that 
        are not medicare beneficiaries.
            (2) A determination of whether the integrity of data 
        collected pursuant to the Outcome and Assessment Information 
        Set (OASIS) is affected by the personal nature of the questions 
        posed by reason of such set.
            (3) With respect to the comprehensive assessment of 
        patients, a determination of whether the integrity of the data 
        collected would be improved by providing additional time for 
        the completion of the comprehensive assessment and the update 
        of the comprehensive assessment.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Comprehensive assessment of patients.--The term 
        ``comprehensive assessment of patients'' means the rule 
        published by the Health Care Financing Administration in the 
        Federal Register on January 25, 1999 (64 FR 3784), that 
        requires, as a condition of participation in the medicare 
        program, a home health agency to provide a patient-specific 
        comprehensive assessment that accurately reflects the patient's 
        current status and that incorporates the Outcome and Assessment 
        Information Set (OASIS), under section 484.55 of title 42 of 
        the Code of Federal Regulations.
            (2) Completion of the comprehensive assessment.--The term 
        ``completion of the comprehensive assessment'' means the 
        standard for the completion of the comprehensive assessment 
        provided under subsection (b) of such section.
            (3) Update of the comprehensive assessment.--The term 
        ``update of the comprehensive assessment'' means the standard 
        for an update of the comprehensive assessment provided under 
        subsection (d) of such section.
            (4) Outcome and assessment information set.--The term 
        ``Outcome and Assessment Information Set'' means the standard 
        provided under subsection (e) of such section, relating to data 
        items that must be used in conducting a comprehensive 
        assessment of patients.
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