S. 406 (rh) To amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to make permanent the demonstration program that allows for direct billing of medicare, medicaid, and other third party payors, and to expand the eligibility under such program to other tribes an...

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106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 406


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 17, 1999

    Referred to the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the 
    Committees on Ways and Means, and Commerce, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to make permanent the 
   demonstration program that allows for direct billing of medicare, 
 medicaid, and other third party payors, and to expand the eligibility 
      under such program to other tribes and tribal organizations.

    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 ``Alaska Native and American Indian 
Direct Reimbursement Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) In 1988, Congress enacted section 405 of the Indian 
        Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1645) that established a 
        demonstration program to authorize 4 tribally-operated Indian 
        Health Service hospitals or clinics to test methods for direct 
        billing and receipt of payment for health services provided to 
        patients eligible for reimbursement under the medicare or 
        medicaid programs under titles XVIII and XIX of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.; 1396 et seq.), and other 
        third-party payors.
            (2) The 4 participants selected by the Indian Health 
        Service for the demonstration program began the direct billing 
        and collection program in fiscal year 1989 and unanimously 
        expressed success and satisfaction with the program. Benefits 
        of the program include dramatically increased collections for 
        services provided under the medicare and medicaid programs, a 
        significant reduction in the turn-around time between billing 
        and receipt of payments for services provided to eligible 
        patients, and increased efficiency of participants being able 
        to track their own billings and collections.
            (3) The success of the demonstration program confirms that 
        the direct involvement of tribes and tribal organizations in 
        the direct billing of, and collection of payments from, the 
        medicare and medicaid programs, and other third payor 
        reimbursements, is more beneficial to Indian tribes than the 
        current system of Indian Health Service-managed collections.
            (4) Allowing tribes and tribal organizations to directly 
        manage their medicare and medicaid billings and collections, 
        rather than channeling all activities through the Indian Health 
        Service, will enable the Indian Health Service to reduce its 
        administrative costs, is consistent with the provisions of the 
        Indian Self-Determination Act, and furthers the commitment of 
        the Secretary to enable tribes and tribal organizations to 
        manage and operate their health care programs.
            (5) The demonstration program was originally to expire on 
        September 30, 1996, but was extended by Congress, so that the 
        current participants would not experience an interruption in 
        the program while Congress awaited a recommendation from the 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services on whether to make the 
        program permanent.
            (6) It would be beneficial to the Indian Health Service and 
        to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Alaska Native 
        organizations to provide permanent status to the demonstration 
        program and to extend participation in the program to other 
        Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Alaska Native health 
        organizations who operate a facility of the Indian Health 
        Service.

SEC. 3. DIRECT BILLING OF MEDICARE, MEDICAID, AND OTHER THIRD PARTY 
              PAYORS.

    (a) Permanent Authorization.--Section 405 of the Indian Health Care 
Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1645) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) Establishment of Direct Billing Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a program 
        under which Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Alaska 
        Native health organizations that contract or compact for the 
        operation of a hospital or clinic of the Service under the 
        Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act may 
        elect to directly bill for, and receive payment for, health 
        care services provided by such hospital or clinic for which 
        payment is made under title XVIII of the Social Security Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) (in this section referred to as the 
        `medicare program'), under a State plan for medical assistance 
        approved under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1396 et seq.) (in this section referred to as the `medicaid 
        program'), or from any other third party payor.
            ``(2) Application of 100 percent fmap.--The third sentence 
        of section 1905(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1396d(b)) shall apply for purposes of reimbursement under the 
        medicaid program for health care services directly billed under 
        the program established under this section.
    ``(b) Direct Reimbursement.--
            ``(1) Use of funds.--Each hospital or clinic participating 
        in the program described in subsection (a) of this section 
        shall be reimbursed directly under the medicare and medicaid 
        programs for services furnished, without regard to the 
        provisions of section 1880(c) of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1395qq(c)) and sections 402(a) and 813(b)(2)(A), but all 
        funds so reimbursed shall first be used by the hospital or 
        clinic for the purpose of making any improvements in the 
        hospital or clinic that may be necessary to achieve or maintain 
        compliance with the conditions and requirements applicable 
        generally to facilities of such type under the medicare or 
        medicaid programs. Any funds so reimbursed which are in excess 
        of the amount necessary to achieve or maintain such conditions 
        shall be used--
                    ``(A) solely for improving the health resources 
                deficiency level of the Indian tribe; and
                    ``(B) in accordance with the regulations of the 
                Service applicable to funds provided by the Service 
                under any contract entered into under the Indian Self-
                Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450f et seq.).
            ``(2) Audits.--The amounts paid to the hospitals and 
        clinics participating in the program established under this 
        section shall be subject to all auditing requirements 
        applicable to programs administered directly by the Service and 
        to facilities participating in the medicare and medicaid 
        programs.
            ``(3) Secretarial oversight.--The Secretary shall monitor 
        the performance of hospitals and clinics participating in the 
        program established under this section, and shall require such 
        hospitals and clinics to submit reports on the program to the 
        Secretary on an annual basis.
            ``(4) No payments from special funds.--Notwithstanding 
        section 1880(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1395qq(c)) or section 402(a), no payment may be made out of the 
        special funds described in such sections for the benefit of any 
        hospital or clinic during the period that the hospital or 
        clinic participates in the program established under this 
        section.
    ``(c) Requirements for Participation.--
            ``(1) Application.--Except as provided in paragraph (2)(B), 
        in order to be eligible for participation in the program 
        established under this section, an Indian tribe, tribal 
        organization, or Alaska Native health organization shall submit 
        an application to the Secretary that establishes to the 
        satisfaction of the Secretary that--
                    ``(A) the Indian tribe, tribal organization, or 
                Alaska Native health organization contracts or compacts 
                for the operation of a facility of the Service;
                    ``(B) the facility is eligible to participate in 
                the medicare or medicaid programs under section 1880 or 
                1911 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395qq; 
                1396j);
                    ``(C) the facility meets the requirements that 
                apply to programs operated directly by the Service; and
                    ``(D) the facility--
                            ``(i) is accredited by an accrediting body 
                        as eligible for reimbursement under the 
                        medicare or medicaid programs; or
                            ``(ii) has submitted a plan, which has been 
                        approved by the Secretary, for achieving such 
                        accreditation.
            ``(2) Approval.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall review and 
                approve a qualified application not later than 90 days 
                after the date the application is submitted to the 
                Secretary unless the Secretary determines that any of 
                the criteria set forth in paragraph (1) are not met.
                    ``(B) Grandfather of demonstration program 
                participants.--Any participant in the demonstration 
                program authorized under this section as in effect on 
                the day before the date of enactment of the Alaska 
                Native and American Indian Direct Reimbursement Act of 
                1999 shall be deemed approved for participation in the 
                program established under this section and shall not be 
                required to submit an application in order to 
                participate in the program.
                    ``(C) Duration.--An approval by the Secretary of a 
                qualified application under subparagraph (A), or a 
                deemed approval of a demonstration program under 
                subparagraph (B), shall continue in effect as long as 
                the approved applicant or the deemed approved 
                demonstration program meets the requirements of this 
                section.
    ``(d) Examination and Implementation of Changes.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Service, and with the assistance of the Administrator of the 
        Health Care Financing Administration, shall examine on an 
        ongoing basis and implement--
                    ``(A) any administrative changes that may be 
                necessary to facilitate direct billing and 
                reimbursement under the program established under this 
                section, including any agreements with States that may 
                be necessary to provide for direct billing under the 
                medicaid program; and
                    ``(B) any changes that may be necessary to enable 
                participants in the program established under this 
                section to provide to the Service medical records 
                information on patients served under the program that 
                is consistent with the medical records information 
                system of the Service.
            ``(2) Accounting information.--The accounting information 
        that a participant in the program established under this 
        section shall be required to report shall be the same as the 
        information required to be reported by participants in the 
        demonstration program authorized under this section as in 
        effect on the day before the date of enactment of the Alaska 
        Native and American Indian Direct Reimbursement Act of 1999. 
        The Secretary may from time to time, after consultation with 
        the program participants, change the accounting information 
        submission requirements.
    ``(e) Withdrawal From Program.--A participant in the program 
established under this section may withdraw from participation in the 
same manner and under the same conditions that a tribe or tribal 
organization may retrocede a contracted program to the Secretary under 
authority of the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.). 
All cost accounting and billing authority under the program established 
under this section shall be returned to the Secretary upon the 
Secretary's acceptance of the withdrawal of participation in this 
program.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 1880 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1395qq) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) For provisions relating to the authority of certain Indian 
tribes, tribal organizations, and Alaska Native health organizations to 
elect to directly bill for, and receive payment for, health care 
services provided by a hospital or clinic of such tribes or 
organizations and for which payment may be made under this title, see 
section 405 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 
1645).''.
            (2) Section 1911 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1396j) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) For provisions relating to the authority of certain Indian 
tribes, tribal organizations, and Alaska Native health organizations to 
elect to directly bill for, and receive payment for, health care 
services provided by a hospital or clinic of such tribes or 
organizations and for which payment may be made under this title, see 
section 405 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 
1645).''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on October 1, 2000.

SEC. 4. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

    (a) In General.--Effective November 9, 1998, section 405 of the 
Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1645(e)) is reenacted as 
in effect on that date.
    (b) Reports.--Effective November 10, 1998, section 405 of the 
Indian Health Care Improvement Act is amended by striking subsection 
(e).

            Passed the Senate September 15, 1999.

            Attest:

                                                    GARY SISCO,

                                                             Secretary.

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