HR 2706 — Freedom from Price Gouging Act

(a) Amounts Except as provided in section 1395mm of this title, and subject to the succeeding provisions of this section, there shall be paid from the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, in the case of each individual who is covered under the insurance program established by this part and incurs expenses for services with respect to which benefits are payable under this part, amounts equal to— (1) in the case of services described in section 1395k(a)(1) of this title—80 percent of the reasonable charges for the services; except that (A) an organization which provides medical and other health services (or arranges for their availability) on a prepayment basis (and either is sponsored by a union or employer, or does not provide, or arrange for the provision of, any inpatient hospital services) may elect to be paid 80 percent of the reasonable cost of services for which payment may be made under this part on behalf of individuals enrolled in such organization in lieu of 80 percent of the reasonable charges for such services if the organization undertakes to charge such individuals no more than 20 percent of such reasonable cost plus any amounts payable by them as a result of subsection (b), (B) with respect to items and services described in section 1395x(s)(10)(A) of this title, the amounts paid shall be 100 percent of the reasonable charges for such items and services, (C) with respect to expenses incurred for those physicians’ services for which payment may be made under this part that are described in section 1395y(a)(4) of this title, the amounts paid shall be subject to such limitations as may be prescribed by regulations, (D) with respect to clinical diagnostic laboratory tests for which payment is made under this part (i)(I) on the basis of a fee schedule under subsection (h)(1) (for tests furnished before January 1, 2017) or subsection (d)(1) or (aa) of section 1395m of this title, the amount paid shall be equal to 80 percent (or 100 percent, in the case of such tests for which payment is made on an assignment-related basis) of the lesser of the amount determined under such fee schedule, the limitation amount for that test determined under subsection (h)(4)(B), or the amount of the charges billed for the tests, or (II) under section 1395m–1 of this title (for tests furnished on or after January 1, 2017), the amount paid shall be equal to 80 percent (or 100 percent, in the case of such tests for which payment is made on an assignment-related basis) of the lesser of the amount determined under such section or the amount of the charges billed for the tests, or (ii) for tests furnished before January 1, 2017, on the basis of a negotiated rate established under subsection (h)(6), the amount paid shall be equal to 100 percent of such negotiated rate,,1 (E) with respect to services furnished to individuals who have been determined to have end stage renal disease, the amounts paid shall be determined subject to the provisions of section 1395rr of this title, (F) with respect to clinical social worker services under section 1395x(s)(2)(N) of this title, the amounts paid shall be 80 percent of the lesser of (i) the actual charge for the services or (ii) 75 percent of the amount determined for payment of a psychologist under clause (L), (G) with respect to facility services furnished in connection with a surgical procedure specified pursuant to subsection (i)(1)(A) and furnished to an individual in an ambulatory surgical center described in such subsection, for services furnished beginning with the implementation date of a revised payment system for such services in such facilities specified in subsection (i)(2)(D), the amounts paid, subject to subsection (i)(9), shall be 80 percent of the lesser of the actual charge for the services or the amount determined by the Secretary under such revised payment system, (H) with respect to services of a certified registered nurse anesthetist under section 1395x(s)(11) of th...

(a) Payment for durable medical equipment (1) General rule for payment (A) In general With respect to a covered item (as defined in paragraph (13)) for which payment is determined under this subsection, payment shall be made in the frequency specified in paragraphs (2) through (7) and in an amount equal to 80 percent of the payment basis described in subparagraph (B). (B) Payment basis Subject to subparagraph (F)(i), the payment basis described in this subparagraph is the lesser of— (i) the actual charge for the item, or (ii) the payment amount recognized under paragraphs (2) through (7) of this subsection for the item; except that clause (i) shall not apply if the covered item is furnished by a public home health agency (or by another home health agency which demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that a significant portion of its patients are low income) free of charge or at nominal charges to the public. (C) Exclusive payment rule Subject to subparagraph (F)(ii), this subsection shall constitute the exclusive provision of this subchapter for payment for covered items under this part or under part A to a home health agency. (D) Reduction in fee schedules for certain items With respect to a seat-lift chair or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator furnished on or after April 1, 1990, the Secretary shall reduce the payment amount applied under subparagraph (B)(ii) for such an item by 15 percent, and, in the case of a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator furnished on or after January 1, 1991, the Secretary shall further reduce such payment amount (as previously reduced) by 45 percent. (E) Clinical conditions for coverage (i) In general The Secretary shall establish standards for clinical conditions for payment for covered items under this subsection. (ii) Requirements The standards established under clause (i) shall include the specification of types or classes of covered items that require, as a condition of payment under this subsection, a face-to-face examination of the individual by a physician (as defined in section 1395x(r) of this title), a physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or a clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in section 1395x(aa)(5) of this title) and a prescription for the item. (iii) Priority of establishment of standards In establishing the standards under this subparagraph, the Secretary shall first establish standards for those covered items for which the Secretary determines there has been a proliferation of use, consistent findings of charges for covered items that are not delivered, or consistent findings of falsification of documentation to provide for payment of such covered items under this part. (iv) Standards for power wheelchairs Effective on December 8, 2003, in the case of a covered item consisting of a motorized or power wheelchair for an individual, payment may not be made for such covered item unless a physician (as defined in section 1395x(r)(1) of this title), a physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or a clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in section 1395x(aa)(5) of this title) has conducted a face-to-face examination of the individual and written a prescription for the item. (v) Limitation on payment for covered items Payment may not be made for a covered item under this subsection unless the item meets any standards established under this subparagraph for clinical condition of coverage. (F) Application of competitive acquisition; limitation of inherent reasonableness authority In the case of covered items furnished on or after January 1, 2011, subject to subparagraphs (G) and (H), that are included in a competitive acquisition program in a competitive acquisition area under section 1395w–3(a) of this title— (i) the payment basis under this subsection for such items and services furnished in such area shall be the payment basis determined under such competitive acquisition program; (ii) the Secretary may (and, in the case of ...

(a) Application (1) In general Except as provided in paragraph (2), this section shall apply to payment for drugs and biologicals that are described in section 1395u(o)(1)(C) of this title and that are furnished on or after January 1, 2005. (2) Election This section shall not apply in the case of a physician who elects under subsection (a)(1)(A)(ii) of section 1395w–3b of this title for that section to apply instead of this section for the payment for drugs and biologicals. (b) Payment amount (1) In general Subject to paragraph (7) and subsections (d)(3)(C) and (e), the amount of payment determined under this section for the billing and payment code for a drug or biological (based on a minimum dosage unit) is, subject to applicable deductible and coinsurance— (A) in the case of a multiple source drug (as defined in subsection (c)(6)(C)), 106 percent of the amount determined under paragraph (3) for a multiple source drug furnished before April 1, 2008, or 106 percent of the amount determined under paragraph (6) for a multiple source drug furnished on or after April 1, 2008; (B) in the case of a single source drug or biological (as defined in subsection (c)(6)(D)), 106 percent of the amount determined under paragraph (4) or in the case of such a drug or biological product that is a selected drug (as referred to in section 1320f–1(c) of this title), with respect to a price applicability period (as defined in section 1320f(b)(2) of this title), 106 percent of the maximum fair price (as defined in section 1320f(c)(3) of this title) applicable for such drug and a year during such period; or (C) in the case of a biosimilar biological product (as defined in subsection (c)(6)(H)), the amount determined under paragraph (8). (2) Specification of unit (A) Specification by manufacturer The manufacturer of a drug or biological shall specify the unit associated with each National Drug Code (including package size) as part of the submission of data under section 1396r–8(b)(3)(A)(iii) of this title or subsection (f)(2), as applicable. (B) Unit defined In this section, the term “unit” means, with respect to each National Drug Code (including package size) associated with a drug or biological, the lowest identifiable quantity (such as a capsule or tablet, milligram of molecules, or grams) of the drug or biological that is dispensed, exclusive of any diluent without reference to volume measures pertaining to liquids. For years after 2004, the Secretary may establish the unit for a manufacturer to report and methods for counting units as the Secretary determines appropriate to implement this section. (3) Multiple source drug For all drug products included within the same multiple source drug billing and payment code, the amount specified in this paragraph is the volume-weighted average of the average sales prices reported under section 1396r–8(b)(3)(A)(iii) of this title or subsection (f)(2), as applicable, determined by— (A) computing the sum of the products (for each National Drug Code assigned to such drug products) of— (i) the manufacturer’s average sales price (as defined in subsection (c)); and (ii) the total number of units specified under paragraph (2) sold; and (B) dividing the sum determined under subparagraph (A) by the sum of the total number of units under subparagraph (A)(ii) for all National Drug Codes assigned to such drug products. (4) Single source drug or biological The amount specified in this paragraph for a single source drug or biological is the lesser of the following: (A) Average sales price The average sales price as determined using the methodology applied under paragraph (3) for single source drugs and biologicals furnished before April 1, 2008, and using the methodology applied under paragraph (6) for single source drugs and biologicals furnished on or after April 1, 2008, for all National Drug Codes assigned to such drug or biological product. (B) Wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) The wholesale acquisition cost (as ...