[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3407 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3407

  To improve the quality of care in nursing homes, help families make 
              informed decisions, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2010

 Mr. Feingold introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To improve the quality of care in nursing homes, help families make 
              informed decisions, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Improving the Quality of Care in 
Nursing Homes Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The Institute of Medicine published the 1986 report 
        Improving the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes, which laid out 
        recommendations for policy and regulatory changes for Federal 
        oversight of nursing homes.
            (2) The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 
        incorporated many of those recommendations as part of the 
        amendments made by subtitle C of title IV of such Act.
            (3) Since the enactment of the Omnibus Budget 
        Reconciliation Act of 1987, there has been little systematic 
        evaluation or review of the effectiveness of the survey and 
        certification system in measuring and improving the quality of 
        care for nursing home residents as well as ensuring compliance 
        with the requirements of participation by nursing homes 
        participating in Medicare or Medicaid.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORT BY THE INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
enter into an agreement with the Institute of Medicine to conduct a 
study on the following:
            (1) The current structure and methods for surveying and 
        evaluating nursing homes.
            (2) The nature of the relationship between the Centers for 
        Medicare & Medicaid Services and nursing homes and how it 
        affects efforts to improve quality.
            (3) The relationship between the Centers for Medicare & 
        Medicaid Services and State agencies.
            (4) The methodology used by the Centers for Medicare & 
        Medicaid Services to survey and evaluate nursing homes.
            (5) An evaluation of how the States and the District of 
        Columbia implement the Federal requirements and the resulting 
        variations and differences.
            (6) The objectivity and accuracy of the survey process and 
        criteria used to assess nursing homes.
            (7) The effectiveness of the current enforcement system in 
        promoting and encouraging systemic organizational change 
        leading to measurable and sustained quality improvement within 
        the nursing home.
            (8) Whether the current system effectively understands and 
        measures nursing homes that are undergoing or have completed 
        culture change activities.
            (9) Whether the current system effectively allows states 
        and other stakeholders to engage in innovative ways to pursue 
        quality improvement.
            (10) Alternatives to the current system.
    (b) Report.--The agreement entered into under subsection (a) shall 
provide for the Institute of Medicine to submit to the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services and the Congress, not later than 18 months 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, a report containing a 
description of--
            (1) the results of the study conducted under this section; 
        and
            (2) the conclusions and recommendations of the Institute of 
        Medicine regarding changes in regulatory policies and 
        procedures to enhance the ability of the regulatory system to 
        assure that nursing home residents receive quality care.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    To carry out this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated such 
sums as may be necessary.
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