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Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health For Immediate Release Bipartisan Medicare Bill Approved Unanimously WASHINGTON – This morning, a bipartisan Medicare bill received unanimous support in a markup by the Health Subcommittee. H.R. 2768, the “Medicare Regulatory And Contract Reform Act of 2001,” was further strengthened today with an amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-CT), Chairwoman of the Health Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee. The amendment was accepted unanimously by voice vote. “Our bill delivers help to providers so they can spend less time on endless paperwork, and more time on what is important – patient care,” said Chairwoman Johnson. The legislation was carefully crafted over six months of bipartisan consultation within Congress, and also with health care providers and the Department of Health and Human Services. Ranking Member Pete Stark was integral to the process, and in fact, every Democrat and Republican Subcommittee member cosponsored the bill that was introduced on August 2, and voted for the more fully developed final bill. H.R. 2768 recognizes that Medicare’s rules and regulations are too complicated, and need to be fixed. The legislation mandates a more consistent and decipherable regulatory scheme and fosters a more collaborative and less confrontational relationship between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and providers. It also modernizes Medicare’s contracting process through competitive bidding that will bring greater efficiency to the system. No payment provisions, or “give backs” to providers, were included in the bill and the Congressional Budget Office has preliminarily scored the legislation as having no cost. Summary of H.R. 2768 as Reported to Ways and Means Committee Legislative Language of the Johnson Substitute Amendment |