[DOCID: f:publ173.108] [[Page 2065]] MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION DRUG, IMPROVEMENT, AND MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2003 [[Page 117 STAT. 2066]] Public Law 108-173 108th Congress An Act To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for a voluntary program for prescription drug coverage under the Medicare Program, to modernize the Medicare Program, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a deduction to individuals for amounts contributed to health savings security accounts and health savings accounts, to provide for the disposition of unused health benefits in cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements, and for other purposes. <<NOTE: Dec. 8, 2003 - [H.R. 1]>> <<NOTE: Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003.>> Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SEC. 1014. <<NOTE: 42 USC 299 note.>> HEALTH CARE THAT WORKS FOR ALL AMERICANS: CITIZENS HEALTH CARE WORKING GROUP. (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following: (1) In order to improve the health care system, the American public must engage in an informed national public debate to make choices about the services they want covered, what health care coverage they want, and how they are willing to pay for coverage. (2) More than a trillion dollars annually is spent on the health care system, yet-- (A) 41,000,000 Americans are uninsured; (B) insured individuals do not always have access to essential, effective services to improve and maintain their health; and (C) employers, who cover over 170,000,000 Americans, find providing coverage increasingly difficult because of rising costs and double digit premium increases. (3) Despite increases in medical care spending that are greater than the rate of inflation, population growth, and Gross Domestic Product growth, there has not been a commensurate improvement in our health status as a nation. [[Page 117 STAT. 2442]] (4) Health care costs for even just 1 member of a family can be catastrophic, resulting in medical bills potentially harming the economic stability of the entire family. (5) Common life occurrences can jeopardize the ability of a family to retain private coverage or jeopardize access to public coverage. (6) Innovations in health care access, coverage, and quality of care, including the use of technology, have often come from States, local communities, and private sector organizations, but more creative policies could tap this potential. (7) Despite our Nation's wealth, the health care system does not provide coverage to all Americans who want it. (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are-- (1) to provide for a nationwide public debate about improving the health care system to provide every American with the ability to obtain quality, affordable health care coverage; and (2) to provide for a vote by Congress on the recommendations that result from the debate. (c) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, shall establish an entity to be known as the Citizens' Health Care Working Group (referred to in this section as the ``Working Group''). (d) Membership.-- (1) Number and appointment.--The Working Group shall be composed of 15 members. One member shall be the Secretary. The Comptroller General of the United States shall appoint 14 members. (2) Qualifications.-- (A) In general.--The membership of the Working Group shall include-- (i) consumers of health services that represent those individuals who have not had insurance within 2 years of appointment, that have had chronic illnesses, including mental illness, are disabled, and those who receive insurance coverage through medicare and medicaid; and (ii) individuals with expertise in financing and paying for benefits and access to care, business and labor perspectives, and providers of health care. The membership shall reflect a broad geographic representation and a balance between urban and rural representatives. (B) Prohibited appointments.--Members of the Working Group shall not include Members of Congress or other elected government officials (Federal, State, or local). Individuals appointed to the Working Group shall not be paid employees or representatives of associations or advocacy organizations involved in the health care system. (e) Period of Appointment.--Members of the Working Group shall be appointed for a life of the Working Group. Any vacancies shall not affect the power and duties of the Working Group but shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. (f) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> Designation of the Chairperson.--Not later than 15 days after the date on which all members of the Working Group have [[Page 117 STAT. 2443]] been appointed under subsection (d)(1), the Comptroller General shall designate the chairperson of the Working Group. (g) Subcommittees.--The Working Group may establish subcommittees if doing so increases the efficiency of the Working Group in completing its tasks. (h) Duties.-- (1) Hearings.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the designation of the chairperson under subsection (f), the Working Group shall hold hearings to examine-- (A) the capacity of the public and private health care systems to expand coverage options; (B) the cost of health care and the effectiveness of care provided at all stages of disease; (C) innovative State strategies used to expand health care coverage and lower health care costs; (D) local community solutions to accessing health care coverage; (E) efforts to enroll individuals currently eligible for public or private health care coverage; (F) the role of evidence-based medical practices that can be documented as restoring, maintaining, or improving a patient's health, and the use of technology in supporting providers in improving quality of care and lowering costs; and (G) strategies to assist purchasers of health care, including consumers, to become more aware of the impact of costs, and to lower the costs of health care. (2) Additional hearings.--The Working Group may hold additional hearings on subjects other than those listed in paragraph (1) so long as such hearings are determined to be necessary by the Working Group in carrying out the purposes of this section. Such additional hearings do not have to be completed within the time period specified in paragraph (1) but shall not delay the other activities of the Working Group under this section. (3) The health report to the american people.--Not later than 90 days after the hearings described in paragraphs (1) and (2) are completed, the Working Group shall prepare and make available to health care consumers through the Internet and other appropriate public channels, a report to be entitled, ``The Health Report to the American People''. Such report shall be understandable to the general public and include-- (A) a summary of-- (i) health care and related services that may be used by individuals throughout their life span; (ii) the cost of health care services and their medical effectiveness in providing better quality of care for different age groups; (iii) the source of coverage and payment, including reimbursement, for health care services; (iv) the reasons people are uninsured or underinsured and the cost to taxpayers, purchasers of health services, and communities when Americans are uninsured or underinsured; (v) the impact on health care outcomes and costs when individuals are treated in all stages of disease; (vi) health care cost containment strategies; and [[Page 117 STAT. 2444]] (vii) information on health care needs that need to be addressed; (B) examples of community strategies to provide health care coverage or access; (C) information on geographic-specific issues relating to health care; (D) information concerning the cost of care in different settings, including institutional-based care and home and community-based care; (E) a summary of ways to finance health care coverage; and (F) the role of technology in providing future health care including ways to support the information needs of patients and providers. (4) Community meetings.-- (A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which all the members of the Working Group have been appointed under subsection (d)(1) and appropriations are first made available to carry out this section, the Working Group shall initiate health care community meetings throughout the United States (in this paragraph referred to as ``community meetings''). Such community meetings may be geographically or regionally based and shall be completed within 180 days after the initiation of the first meeting. (B) Number of meetings.--The Working Group shall hold a sufficient number of community meetings in order to receive information that reflects-- (i) the geographic differences throughout the United States; (ii) diverse populations; and (iii) a balance among urban and rural populations. (C) Meeting requirements.-- (i) Facilitator.--A State health officer may be the facilitator at the community meetings. (ii) Attendance.--At least 1 member of the Working Group shall attend and serve as chair of each community meeting. Other members may participate through interactive technology. (iii) Topics.--The community meetings shall, at a minimum, address the following questions: (I) What health care benefits and services should be provided? (II) How does the American public want health care delivered? (III) How should health care coverage be financed? (IV) What trade-offs are the American public willing to make in either benefits or financing to ensure access to affordable, high quality health care coverage and services? (iv) Interactive technology.--The Working Group may encourage public participation in community meetings through interactive technology and other means as determined appropriate by the Working Group. [[Page 117 STAT. 2445]] (D) Interim requirements.--Not later than 180 days after the date of completion of the community meetings, the Working Group shall prepare and make available to the public through the Internet and other appropriate public channels, an interim set of recommendations on health care coverage and ways to improve and strengthen the health care system based on the information and preferences expressed at the community meetings. There shall be a 90-day public comment period on such recommendations. (i) Recommendations.--Not later than 120 days after the expiration of the public comment period described in subsection (h)(4)(D), the Working Group shall submit to Congress and the President a final set of recommendations. (j) Administration.-- (1) Executive director.--There shall be an Executive Director of the Working Group who shall be appointed by the chairperson of the Working Group in consultation with the members of the Working Group. (2) Compensation.--While serving on the business of the Working Group (including travel time), a member of the Working Group shall be entitled to compensation at the per diem equivalent of the rate provided for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, and while so serving away from home and the member's regular place of business, a member may be allowed travel expenses, as authorized by the chairperson of the Working Group. For purposes of pay and employment benefits, rights, and privileges, all personnel of the Working Group shall be treated as if they were employees of the Senate. (3) Information from federal agencies.--The Working Group may secure directly from any Federal department or agency such information as the Working Group considers necessary to carry out this section. Upon request of the Working Group, the head of such department or agency shall furnish such information. (4) Postal services.--The Working Group may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and agencies of the Federal Government. (k) Detail.--Not more than 10 Federal Government employees employed by the Department of Labor and 10 Federal Government employees employed by the Department of Health and Human Services may be detailed to the Working Group under this section without further reimbursement. Any detail of an employee shall be without interruption or loss of civil service status or privilege. (l) Temporary and Intermittent Services.--The chairperson of the Working Group may procure temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such title. (m) Annual Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter during the existence of the Working Group, the Working Group shall report to Congress and make public a detailed description of the expenditures [[Page 117 STAT. 2446]] of the Working Group used to carry out its duties under this section. (n) Sunset of Working Group.--The Working Group shall terminate on the date that is 2 years after the date on which all the members of the Working Group have been appointed under subsection (d)(1) and appropriations are first made available to carry out this section. (o) Administration <<NOTE: Reports. Deadline.>> Review and Comments.--Not later than 45 days after receiving the final recommendations of the Working Group under subsection (i), the President shall submit a report to Congress which shall contain-- (1) additional views and comments on such recommendations; and (2) recommendations for such legislation and administrative actions as the President considers appropriate. (p) Required Congressional Action.--Not later than 45 days after receiving the report submitted by the President under subsection (o), each committee of jurisdiction of Congress, the Committee on Finance of the Senate, the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives, shall hold at least 1 hearing on such report and on the final recommendations of the Working Group submitted under subsection (i). (q) Authorization of Appropriations.-- (1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, other than subsection (h)(3), $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 and 2006. (2) Health report to the american people.--There are authorized to be appropriated for the preparation and dissemination of the Health Report to the American People described in subsection (h)(3), such sums as may be necessary for the fiscal year in which the report is required to be submitted.