Policy Corner: May 24, 2019

House-Passes Bills to Improve Benefits for Veterans

Before the Memorial Day weekend, the U.S. House of Representatives passed nine bills relating to veterans with regard to suicide prevention, transition assistance, and homelessness. For a full list of the nine bills passed, click here.

Senate HELP Committee Develops Discussion Draft on Surprise Medical Bills

The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee has released a discussion draft of their bipartisan package aimed at reigning in health care costs. Included in the package are provisions relating to out-of-network “surprise medical bills” as described below:

• Protecting patients against out-of-network deductibles for emergencies
  • Ensures that patient protections for emergency services apply in all relevant settings of care
  • Requires that emergency health care charges to a patient be counted toward the patient’s in-patient network deductible
• Protection against surprise bills
  • If a patient is stabilized after entering a facility through the emergency room, the patient must be given advanced notice of any out-of-network care, an estimate of costs for out-of-network care, and referrals for alternative options for in-network care. If a patient is not given adequate notice, the patient would be protected for surprise bills or out-of-network cost sharing.
  • Patients are held harmless from surprise medical bills. Patients are required to pay only the in-networking cost sharing amount for charges for out-of-network emergency and for care for ancillary out-of-network practitioners, and for out-of-network diagnostic services provided in an in-network facility. Facilities and practitioners are barred from sending “balance bills” for more than in-network costs sharing amount.

Senators Introduce the RISE Act

Sen. Robert P. Casey, Jr. (D-Pa.) introduced the Respond, Innovate, Succeed, and Empower (RISE) Act, S.1585, this week to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide students with disabilities and their families with access to critical information needed to select the right college and succeed once enrolled. The RISE Act addresses three important things for students with disabilities:

1. Requires that colleges accept a student’s IEP, 504 plan, or prior evaluation as sufficient proof of their disability when seeking accommodations.
2. Authorizes more funding for a technical assistance center that provides students and families with information about available disability services and offers faculty training and resources on best practices to support students with disabilities.
3. Requires colleges to report on the number of students with disabilities served, the accommodations provided, and the outcomes for these students.

House and Senate Adjourn

The Senate and House are adjourning and will return to work June 3.

BIAA gratefully acknowledges the Centre for Neuro Skills and Avanir Pharmaceuticals for their support for legislative action.