[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 22, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7072-S7073]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KENNEDY (for himself and Mr. Corzine):
  S. 1286. A bill to require States to report data on medicaid 
beneficiaries who are employed; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, it's an honor to join Senator Corzine and 
Congressman Weiner to introduce the Health Care Accountability Act.
  Americans believe that a fair day's work should bring a fair day's 
pay. That's the American dream. But that's not the case at Wal-Mart. 
Somehow, the biggest company in the world can't manage to pay its 
workers a living wage. Thousands of workers in Wal-Mart can't afford 
health insurance and have to rely on Medicaid to cover their families' 
health needs.
  We are here today to say there is no place for that kind of corporate 
citizenship in America. It is time for Wal-Mart, the Nation's largest 
employer, to act responsibly. The company prides itself on selling 
products at rock-bottom prices. Last year, it raked in $10 billion in 
profits, up 13 percent from 2003. It is no mystery why Wal-Mart does so 
well--it buys its goods overseas and pays its 1.6 million employees 
next to nothing to sell them. Yet Wal-Mart just keeps getting bigger as 
its wages fall farther and farther behind.
  We see the same effect throughout the economy. Companies are making 
huge profits on the backs of their employees. Since the end of the 
recession, profits are up more than 70 percent nationally, yet wages 
are stagnant. More and more of what the economy produces is going to 
business profits, and less to workers, than at any time since such 
records began in 1929. There is plenty for the Executive Suite, but it 
is time for a fair share for employees' pay and benefits, too.

[[Page S7073]]

  We all end up footing the bill when employers refuse to pay a living 
wage. Many companies are making record-breaking profits, yet they shift 
millions of dollars in health costs to the public. In 15 States where 
data are available, Wal-Mart employees are receiving almost $200 
million in Federal and State health benefits. Massachusetts spent 
almost $3 million last year to provide health Care to 3,000 Wal-Mart 
workers and their families.
  The bill we announce today begins to hold these companies 
accountable. All it asks is that States disclose the number of 
employees in large companies who receive State medical assistance, and 
the cost to the States for providing that care.
  Massachusetts was the first State to mandate such a study. The first 
report, released in February, found that the State was paying $53 
million for health care for, employees at some of the largest, most 
profitable firms--including Dunkin Donuts, Stop & Shop, and Wal-Mart.
  Medicaid and CHIP provide a critical safety net for low-income women 
and children, the disabled, and the elderly. They should not also have 
to underwrite the profits for large companies like Wal-Mart.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1286

       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 ``Health Care Accountability 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. STATE REQUIREMENT TO REPORT DATA ON MEDICAID 
                   BENEFICIARIES WHO ARE EMPLOYED.

       (a) Reporting Requirement.--Section 1902(a) of the Social 
     Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(a)) is amended in the first 
     sentence--
       (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (66);
       (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (67) and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (67) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(68) provide for the annual reporting by the State, using 
     data only from applications by individuals for medical 
     assistance under the State plan, on each employer in the 
     State with 50 or more employees who received medical 
     assistance under this title at any time during the previous 
     year, such reporting to include with respect to the employer 
     (A) the name and address of the employer, (B) the number of 
     employees who receive such medical assistance during the 
     previous year, which may include a separate listing of the 
     numbers of part-time and full-time employees if such data is 
     available, (C) the number of individuals who receive such 
     medical assistance during the previous year who are spouses 
     or dependents of such employees, (D) the cost to the State of 
     providing such medical assistance during the previous year to 
     such employees, spouses, and dependents, and (E) the ratio of 
     employees who receive such medical assistance during the 
     previous year to the total employees in the State during that 
     previous year.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall apply with respect to 2006 and each subsequent year.
       (c) Initial Report.--Not later than July 1, 2006, the 
     Secretary of Health and Human Services shall provide for an 
     initial mid-year report by each State with a State plan 
     approved under title XI or XIX of the Social Security Act of 
     the information described in section 1902(a)(68) of such Act, 
     as added by subsection (a).
       (d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act shall be 
     construed as superseding requirements for the protection of 
     patient privacy provided for under section 264(c) of the 
     Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 
     (42 U.S.C. 1320d-2 note), under part C of title XI of the 
     Social Security Act, or under any other provision of Federal 
     law.
                                 ______