ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

SUBCOMMITTEE ON HEALTH

Congresswoman Nancy L. Johnson (R-CT), Chairman, Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold the second day in the hearing series on Medicare reform. On this occasion, the Subcommittee will examine ways to bring regulatory relief to beneficiaries and providers and restructuring the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) in the context of efforts to improve the Medicare program. The hearing will take place on Thursday, March 15, 2001, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. Witnesses will include a panel of health care providers representing doctors, hospitals, nursing homes, and home health agencies. The second panel will include Dr. Gail Wilensky of Project HOPE and other Medicare experts to discuss regulatory relief and to provide suggestions on how HCFA can be more responsive to beneficiaries and providers, possibly through agency restructuring. Any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.

BACKGROUND:

This hearing will be the second in a series of Subcommittee hearings intended to lay the groundwork for the development of legislation to improve and strengthen the Medicare program, including the addition of a much needed prescription drug benefit to the program. The first hearing, held on February 28^th, gave members a general overview of the reform debate. This and subsequent hearings will focus on particular areas in need of reform.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Johnson stated: "Regulatory relief has to be at the center of any effort to improve the Medicare program. Too many providers are spending too much time struggling with paperwork rather than treating patients. It is time to introduce a little common sense into the HCFA bureaucracy."

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The March 15^th hearing is not intended to convey that all regulation is inappropriate - in fact, many regulations addressing patient protections, financial accountability standards, and operational guidance are a vital part of the Medicare program. However, some of HCFA's 130,000 pages of regulations place an unnecessary, and oftentimes duplicative and cumbersome burden on providers that can negatively affect the beneficiaries who rely on them for needed services. Witnesses will provide specific examples of burdensome regulations - and specific suggestions for regulatory changes that can be made to promote, rather than hinder, efforts to improve the Medicare program. The Subcommittee will be presented with testimony on how the government can do its job better, to ensure that beneficiaries are protected, and that taxpayer dollars are used wisely and responsibly without placing undue burdens on providers.

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:

Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit six (6) single-spaced copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, March 29, 2001, to Allison Giles, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Subcommittee on Health office, room 1136 Longworth House Office Building, by close of business the day before the hearing.

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:

Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, typed in single space and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.

2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.

4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.

The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press, and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at "http://waysandmeans.house.gov".

The Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event (four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to special accommodation needs in general (including availability of Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the Committee as noted above.