[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2313 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2313

  To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to permit medicare 
beneficiaries enrolled in prescription drug plans and MA-PD plans that 
  change their formularies or increase drug prices to enroll in other 
                                 plans.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 16, 2006

Mr. Durbin (for himself and Mr. Dayton) 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 medicare 
beneficiaries enrolled in prescription drug plans and MA-PD plans that 
  change their formularies or increase drug prices to enroll in other 
                                 plans.

    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 Drug Honest Pricing Act of 
2006''.

SEC. 2. PERMITTING MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES ENROLLED IN PRESCRIPTION DRUG 
              PLANS AND MA-PD PLANS THAT CHANGE THEIR FORMULARIES OR 
              INCREASE DRUG PRICES TO ENROLL IN OTHER PLANS.

    (a) Special Enrollment Period.--
            (1) In general.--Section 1860D-1(b)(3) of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-101(b)(3)) is amended by adding 
        at the end the following new subparagraphs:
            ``(F) Enrollment under plans that change their 
        formularies.--In the case of a part D eligible individual who 
        is enrolled in a prescription drug plan that uses a formulary, 
        if the plan removes a covered part D drug from its formulary or 
        changes the preferred or tiered cost-sharing status of such a 
        drug and the individual is adversely affected by such change, 
        there shall be a 60-day special enrollment period for the 
        individual beginning on the date on which the individual 
        receives a notice of such removal or change.
            ``(G) Enrollment under plans that increase negotiated 
        prices.--In the case of a part D eligible individual who is 
        enrolled in a prescription drug plan in which the negotiated 
        price used for payment for any covered part D drug increases by 
        10 percent or more from the negotiated price used for payment 
        for the drug as of January 1 of the year (as disclosed to the 
        Secretary pursuant to section 1860D-2(d)(4)(A)).''.
            (2) Informing beneficiaries of negotiated prices.--Section 
        1860D-2(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-102(d)) 
        is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Informing beneficiaries of negotiated prices.--
                    ``(A) Requiring plans to disclose negotiated prices 
                to the secretary.--Not later than November 8 of each 
                year (beginning with 2006), each sponsor of a 
                prescription drug plan shall disclose to the Secretary 
                (in a manner specified by the Secretary) the negotiated 
                price used for payment for each covered part D drug 
                covered under the plan that will apply under the plan 
                on January 1 of the subsequent year.
                    ``(B) Secretary to make negotiated prices available 
                on the cms website.--Not later than November 15 of each 
                year (beginning with 2006), the Secretary shall make 
                information disclosed under subparagraph (A) available 
                to the public through the Internet website of the 
                Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
                    ``(C) Requiring plans to inform beneficiaries of 
                january 1 negotiated price.--Not later than January 10 
                of each year (beginning with 2007), each sponsor of a 
                prescription drug plan shall appropriately inform (as 
                determined by the Secretary) part D eligible 
                individuals enrolled in the plan for the year of the 
                negotiated price used for payment for each covered part 
                D drug that is covered under the plan that was 
                disclosed to the Secretary under subparagraph (A).''.
    (b) Regulations.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
promulgate regulations to carry out the amendments made by this 
section.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on January 1, 2007.
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