The House Ways and Means Committee today approved legislation (H.R. 6142) that would require the Health and Human Services secretary to develop with stakeholders a plan to reduce waste related to single-use drug vials, and report to Congress on options for any needed legislative action to reduce drug waste and better manage costs. AHA has urged the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to incentivize drug makers to align package sizes with the most common dosage amounts. The committee also approved legislation (H.R. 4952) that would direct the HHS Secretary to study and report to Congress on whether including quality percentage increases in the blended benchmark amounts subject to the benchmark cap for Medicare Part C plans undermines quality goals. AHA has expressed ongoing concerns about CMS including quality bonus payments in the calculation of Medicare Advantage benchmark caps. Among other bills approved today, H.R. 4952 would require HHS to include at least one ambulatory surgical center representative on the expert advisory panel that reviews hospital outpatient payment rates under Medicare Part B and require CMS to specify its reasons for excluding services at ASCs. 

Related News Articles

Headline
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Sept. 18 released a final rule on policy and technical changes to Medicare Advantage, the Medicare…
Headline
The Senate Sept. 19 failed to adopt a continuing resolution by a 44-48 vote  that would have funded the government through Nov. 21. The CR was passed by…
Headline
The AHA Sept. 15 expressed support for the Ensuring Access to Essential Providers Act, legislation that would require Medicare Advantage plans to cover…
Headline
The AHA Sept. 15 urged Aetna to rescind its recently announced “level of severity inpatient payment” policy, saying that it “could erode the transparency…
Headline
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Sept. 10 advanced the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act (H.R. 3593), AHA-supported…
Headline
The House Appropriations Committee Sept. 9 advanced the fiscal year 2026 appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education…