[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1148 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1148

   To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permit direct 
payment under the medicare program for clinical social worker services 
          provided to residents of skilled nursing facilities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 26, 2005

Ms. Mikulski (for herself, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Bingaman, Mrs. Murray, Mr. 
 Corzine, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Inouye) 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 permit direct 
payment under the medicare program for clinical social worker services 
          provided to residents of skilled nursing facilities.

    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 ``Clinical Social Work Medicare Equity 
Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. PERMITTING DIRECT PAYMENT UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM FOR 
              CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER SERVICES PROVIDED TO RESIDENTS OF 
              SKILLED NURSING FACILITIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 1888(e)(2)(A)(ii) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395yy(e)(2)(A)(ii)) is amended by inserting ``clinical 
social worker services,'' after ``qualified psychologist services,''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1861(hh)(2) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(hh)(2)) is amended by striking ``and 
other than services furnished to an inpatient of a skilled nursing 
facility which the facility is required to provide as a requirement for 
participation''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to items and services furnished on or after the date that 
regulations relating to payment for physicians' services for calendar 
year 2005 take effect, but in no case later than the first day of the 
third month beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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