[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3650 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3650

  To include costs incurred by the Indian Health Service, a federally 
   qualified health center, an AIDS drug assistance program, certain 
hospitals, or a pharmaceutical manufacturer patient assistance program 
    in providing prescription drugs toward the annual out of pocket 
threshold under part D of title XVIII of the Social Security Act and to 
 provide a safe harbor for assistance provided under a pharmaceutical 
                manufacturer patient assistance program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 12, 2006

 Mr. Bingaman (for himself, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Dorgan, 
 Mr. Kennedy, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Dayton, Mr. Johnson, Mrs. Clinton, and 
  Mr. Akaka) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To include costs incurred by the Indian Health Service, a federally 
   qualified health center, an AIDS drug assistance program, certain 
hospitals, or a pharmaceutical manufacturer patient assistance program 
    in providing prescription drugs toward the annual out of pocket 
threshold under part D of title XVIII of the Social Security Act and to 
 provide a safe harbor for assistance provided under a pharmaceutical 
                manufacturer patient assistance program.

    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 ``Helping Fill the Medicare Rx Gap Act 
of 2006''.

SEC. 2. INCLUDING COSTS INCURRED BY THE INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE, A 
              FEDERALLY QUALIFIED HEALTH CENTER, AN AIDS DRUG 
              ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, CERTAIN HOSPITALS, OR A 
              PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURER PATIENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM IN 
              PROVIDING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS TOWARD THE ANNUAL OUT OF 
              POCKET THRESHOLD UNDER PART D.

    (a) In General.--Section 1860D-2(b)(4)(C) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-102(b)(4)(C)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in clause (ii)--
                    (A) by striking ``such costs shall be treated as 
                incurred only if'' and inserting ``subject to clause 
                (iii), such costs shall be treated as incurred if'';
                    (B) by striking ``, under section 1860D-14, or 
                under a State Pharmaceutical Assistance Program''; and
                    (C) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                ``; and''; and
            (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following new 
        clause:
                            ``(iii) such costs shall be treated as 
                        incurred and shall not be considered to be 
                        reimbursed under clause (ii) if such costs are 
                        borne or paid--
                                    ``(I) under section 1860D-14;
                                    ``(II) under a State Pharmaceutical 
                                Assistance Program;
                                    ``(III) by the Indian Health 
                                Service, an Indian tribe or tribal 
                                organization, or an urban Indian 
                                organization (as defined in section 4 
                                of the Indian Health Care Improvement 
                                Act);
                                    ``(IV) by a federally qualified 
                                health center (as defined in section 
                                1861(aa)(4));
                                    ``(V) under an AIDS Drug Assistance 
                                Program under part B of title XXVI of 
                                the Public Health Service Act;
                                    ``(VI) by a subsection (d) hospital 
                                (as defined in section 1886(d)(1)(B)) 
                                that meets the requirements of clauses 
                                (i) and (ii) of section 340B(a)(4)(L) 
                                of the Public Health Service Act; or
                                    ``(VII) by a pharmaceutical 
                                manufacturer patient assistance 
                                program, either directly or through the 
                                distribution or donation of covered 
                                part D drugs, which shall be valued at 
                                the negotiated price of such covered 
                                part D drug under the enrollee's 
                                prescription drug plan or MA-PD plan as 
                                of the date that the drug was 
                                distributed or donated.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to costs incurred on or after January 1, 2006.

SEC. 3. PROVIDING A SAFE HARBOR FOR PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURER PATIENT 
              ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

    (a) Safe Harbor.--Section 1128B(b)(3) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b(b)(3)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in subparagraph (H), as added by section 237(d) of the 
        Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act 
        of 2003 (Public Law 108-173; 117 Stat. 2213)--
                    (A) by moving such subparagraph 2 ems to the left; 
                and
                    (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                a semicolon;
            (3) by redesignating subparagraph (H), as added by section 
        431(a) of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and 
        Modernization Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-173; 117 Stat. 2287), 
        as subparagraph (I);
            (4) in subparagraph (I), as so redesignated--
                    (A) by moving such subparagraph 2 ems to the left; 
                and
                    (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                ``; and''; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
            ``(J) any remuneration paid by a pharmaceutical 
        manufacturer patient assistance program, either in cash or 
        through the distribution or donation of covered Part D drugs 
        (as defined in section 1860D-2(e)), to an individual enrolled 
        in a prescription drug plan under part D of title XVIII or in 
        an MA-PD plan under part C of such title.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to remuneration paid on or after January 1, 2006.
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