FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE,Contact: (202) 225-3943
July 18, 2000
No. HL-15
Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on further refinements to the Medicare provisions in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA) (P.L. 105-33). The hearing will take place on Tuesday, July 25, 2000, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 1:00 p.m.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. However, 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:
In 1997, Congress passed the BBA, which made the most extensive changes to the Medicare program since its inception in 1965. Among the 300 Medicare provisions in the BBA were efforts to reduce waste, fraud and abuse, expand coverage of preventive benefits, establish new payment methodologies for different Medicare providers, and create the Medicare+Choice managed care risk program. When the bill was passed, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated Medicare savings of $112 billion over five years.
As with any major legislation involving such sweeping fundamental change, there have been unanticipated and unintended consequences for health care providers and implementation delays and problems within the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) that have affected the delivery of services to seniors. Understanding the need for fine-tuning, last year, Congress passed the Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999 (BBRA), as incorporated in the Consolidated Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2000 (P.L. 106-113). The BBRA contained a number of provisions aimed at strengthening Medicare, including assistance for hospitals, particularly in rural areas, nursing homes, home health, and the Medicare+Choice program. Additionally, the BBRA provided and clarified beneficiary protection from high out-of-pocket copayments for certain health services. The CBO estimated that the BBRA provisions would increase Medicare spending by $16 billion over five years.
Even with these Medicare program improvements, the Subcommittee continues to monitor the impact of the BBA on all types of providers and oversee the implementation of the BBA, including the prospective payment systems it established. The Subcommittee periodically assesses whether further refinement of the BBA is warranted and what types of changes may be appropriate.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated: "Both Congress and the Administration must remain vigilant. Problems continue to arise in the implementation of this landmark legislation. Last year, Congress responded to concerns in a bipartisan fashion, making meritorious refinements where necessary without threatening the achievements associated with the 1997 legislation. I have always said that where inequities still persist, we will examine the possibility of further refinements. I hope that Congress and the Administration will work together again to ensure seniors get the health care services they need."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The hearing will provide the opportunity to hear from Administration officials and health care providers about the impact and implementation of the BBA and the BBRA.
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, Tuesday, August 8, 2000, to A.L. Singleton, 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.
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.