[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7241 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7241

   To preserve access to healthcare under the Medicare and Medicaid 
                               programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 2, 2008

 Mr. Engel (for himself, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Rangel, Mr. King 
 of New York, Mrs. Capps, Mr. McHugh, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Crowley, and Mr. 
    Allen) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
   Ways and Means, 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 preserve access to healthcare under the Medicare and Medicaid 
                               programs.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Preserving Access 
to Healthcare (PATH) Act of 2008''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Temporary non-application of Medicare phased-out indirect 
                            medical education adjustment factor.
Sec. 3. Delay in implementation of Medicaid outpatient hospital 
                            services regulation.
Sec. 4. Delay in phase out of the Medicare hospice budget neutrality 
                            adjustment factor.
Sec. 5. Treatment of certain Medicaid family demonstration project.
Sec. 6. Medicaid Improvement Fund technical correction.
Sec. 7. Funding for the Medicare Improvement Fund.

SEC. 2. TEMPORARY NON-APPLICATION OF MEDICARE PHASED-OUT INDIRECT 
              MEDICAL EDUCATION ADJUSTMENT FACTOR.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, during 
the period beginning on October 1, 2008, and ending on March 31, 2009, 
section 412.322 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, shall be 
applied without regard to paragraph (c) of such section.
    (b) No Effect on Subsequent Periods.--Nothing in subsection (a) 
shall be construed as having any effect on the application of section 
412.322 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, after March 31, 2009.

SEC. 3. DELAY IN IMPLEMENTATION OF MEDICAID OUTPATIENT HOSPITAL 
              SERVICES REGULATION.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, during the 6-month 
period that begins on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services shall not finalize or otherwise implement 
provisions contained in the proposed rule published on September 28, 
2007, on pages 55158 through 55166 of volume 72, Federal Register 
(relating to parts 440 and 447 of title 42, Code of Federal 
Regulations).

SEC. 4. DELAY IN PHASE OUT OF THE MEDICARE HOSPICE BUDGET NEUTRALITY 
              ADJUSTMENT FACTOR.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including the 
provisions contained in the final rule published on August 8, 2008, on 
pages 46464 through 46522 of volume 73, Federal Register (relating to 
part 418 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations), the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services shall not phase out or eliminate the budget 
neutrality adjustment factor in the Medicare hospice wage index prior 
to April 1, 2009.

SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN MEDICAID FAMILY DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the 
Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and upon 
the request of the State of California, shall extend approval, and full 
Federal financial participation, of the State's Medicaid family 
planning demonstration project, which was approved under a waiver 
pursuant to section 1115 of the Social Security Act, until June 30, 
2009, under the eligibility requirements and processes that were in 
place for such project as of the date before the first extension period 
for such project.

SEC. 6. MEDICAID IMPROVEMENT FUND TECHNICAL CORRECTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 1941(b)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act, 
as added by section 7002(b) of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 
2008, is amended by inserting ``each of'' after ``for''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect as if included in the enactment of the Supplemental 
Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-252).

SEC. 7. FUNDING FOR THE MEDICARE IMPROVEMENT FUND.

    Section 1898(b)(1) of the Social Security Act, as added by section 
7002(a) of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-
252) and as amended by section 188(a)(2) of the Medicare Improvements 
for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-275) and by 
section 6 of the QI Program Supplemental Funding Act of 2008, is 
amended by striking ``$2,290,000,000'' and inserting 
``$2,590,000,000''.
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