[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 173 (Thursday, December 13, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2272-E2273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              ADMINISTRATIVE SIMPLIFICATION COMPLIANCE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. TOM UDALL

                             of new mexico

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 4, 2001

  Mr. UDALL. Mr. Speaker, today the House will be voting on H.R. 3323, 
the Administrative Simplification Compliance Act, under suspension of 
the Rules. This legislation allows

[[Page E2273]]

health plans and providers to delay compliance with the Health 
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) until 
October 2003.
  HIPAA was designed to improve administrative efficiency in the health 
care industry by facilitating electronic transactions between health 
plans and health care providers. The Department of Health and Human 
Services estimates these administrative simplifications will result in 
net savings (i.e., savings after accounting for implementation costs) 
of $29.9 billion over ten years. The first phase of these 
simplifications is scheduled to go into effect in October 2002.
  Some sectors of the health industry and state government's argue, 
however, that they need extra time to make the technical and procedural 
changes necessary to achieve compliance.
  H.R. 3323 allows these health plans and providers that will be unable 
to comply by the original deadline, to delay HIPAA compliance until 
October 2003, provided that they submit a compliance plan to the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services. This document must summarize 
the entity's budget, schedule, work plan, and implementation strategy 
for becoming compliant by October 2003.
  Mr. Speaker, I support the effort to allow delay for those plans and 
providers that will not be compliant by October 2002, provided that 
they do, in fact, have a plan to be compliant by October of the 
following year. Because H.R. 3323 requires plans and providers who wish 
to delay to submit a plan for compliance to the Secretary, I support 
this legislation.
  I would like to take this opportunity, however, to voice my concerns 
over the fact that some plans, providers, and other types of companies 
affected by the HIPAA rules have gone to great lengths to be compliant 
by the original deadline, and now stand to face financial losses as a 
result of the delay.
  One example of this is a company run by a Dr. Jacob Kuriyan, a 
constituent who resides in the district I represent. Dr. Kuriyan's 
company has developed software that helps facilitate the submission and 
receipt of HIPAA required electronic transactions for health plans and 
providers. Some health plans and providers have already purchased and 
installed this software in anticipation of the rapidly approaching 
HIPAA deadline.
  Should H.R. 3323 pass, and allow some organizations to delay 
compliance, Dr. Kuriyan's company will have to foot the bill for 
removing this software from those providers who have installed it so 
that organizations can still accept paper transactions from the 
organizations who are not ready for HIPAA compliance.
  Therefore, Mr. Speaker, while I do support the effort to allow 
responsible delay for compliance, I believe that Congress should do our 
best to reward, not penalize the organizations and companies, like Dr. 
Kuriyan's, that have invested the resources and made an effort to be 
HIPAA compliant by the original deadline of October 2002.

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