I 111th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 6512 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 9, 2010 Mr. Space (for himself, Mr. Austria, and Mr. Wilson of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means A BILL To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to prevent the catastrophic loss of wage index reclassification.

1.

Preventing catastrophic loss of Medicare wage index reclassification

Section 1886(d)(10)(D) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(10)(D)) is amended by adding at the end the following new clause: (vii)Under the Secretary's guidelines described in clause (i), in the case of a hospital that was reclassified by the Board for fiscal year 2010 to a specific Metropolitan Statistical Area or New England County Metropolitan Area and which would no longer qualify for such reclassification to that same Metropolitan Statistical Area or New England County Metropolitan Area for fiscal year 2011 and if for fiscal year 2011 the average wage index for the geographic area in which such hospital is located is at least 0.1 less than such hospital's average wage index for fiscal year 2010— (I)such hospital's reclassification for fiscal year 2011 shall be extended until the end of fiscal year 2013; (II)such extension shall not result in the recalculation of any diluted wage index for hospitals otherwise utilizing the wage index of the geographic area to which such hospital is reclassified; and (III)the Secretary shall implement such extension on a budget neutral basis as though such hospital satisfied the guidelines published by the Secretary under clause (i) for fiscal year 2011 and each subsequent fiscal year to which subclause (I) applies. .