United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2015
Authorizes the National Emergency Medical Services Memorial Foundation to establish a commemorative work on federal land in the District of Columbia and its environs to commemorate the commitment and service represented by emergency medical services. Prohibits the use of federal funds to pay any expense of the establishment of such work. Makes the Foundation solely responsible for acceptance of contributions for, and payment of the expenses of, the establishment of such work. Provides for the deposit of excess funds received for such work into a National Park Foundation account.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2015
Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to distribution of additional resident positions as they affect calculation of payments for direct graduate medical education costs. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, for each of FY2017-FY2021 (and each succeeding fiscal year if additional residency positions are available to distribute), to increase the otherwise applicable resident limit for each qualifying hospital. Directs the Secretary to determine the total number of additional residency positions available for distribution, in accordance with guidelines for allocating 33% to hospitals already operating over the resident limit, and generally setting the aggregate number of increases in the resident limit to 3,000 in each year. Specifies the process for distributing positions. Declares that, for discharges occurring on or after July 1, 2017, the indirect teaching adjustment factor, with respect to additional payments for subsection (d) hospitals with indirect costs of medical education, insofar as those additional payments are attributable to resident positions distributed to a hospital according to such process, shall be computed in a specified manner with respect to those resident positions. (Generally, a subsection [d] hospital is an acute care hospital, particularly one that receives payments under Medicare's inpatient prospective payment system when providing covered inpatient services to eligible beneficiaries.) Directs the National Health Care Workforce Commission established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to study the physician workforce. Directs the Comptroller General to study strategies for increasing the diversity of the health profession workforce.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2015
Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend to all domestic corporations, including S corporations, provisions allowing deferral of tax on gain from the sale of employer securities to an S corporation-sponsored employee stock ownership plan (ESOP); and (2) allow a tax deduction for 50% of the interest incurred on loans to S corporation-sponsored ESOPs for the purchase of employer securities. Directs the Department of the Treasury to establish the S Corporation Employee Ownership Assistance Office to foster increased employee ownership of S corporations. Amends the Small Business Act to define "ESOP business concern" and allow such a concern to continue to qualify for loans, preferences, and other programs under such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2015
Marijuana Businesses Access to Banking Act of 2015 This bill provides a safe harbor for depository institutions providing financial services to a marijuana-related legitimate business insofar as it prohibits a federal banking regulator from: (1) terminating or limiting the deposit or share insurance of a depository institution solely because it provides financial services to a marijuana-related legitimate business; or (2) prohibiting, penalizing, or otherwise discouraging a depository institution from offering such services. A federal banking regulator may neither recommend, motivate, provide incentives, nor encourage a depository institution to refuse to offer financial services to an individual, nor downgrade or cancel financial services offered to an individual, solely because the individual: (1) is a manufacturer, producer, owner or operator of a marijuana-related legitimate business; or (2) the depository institution was not aware that the individual is the owner or operator of a marijuana-related legitimate business. A federal banking regulator may not take any adverse or corrective supervisory action, solely because of the business involved, on a loan made to an owner or operator of: (1) a marijuana-related legitimate business, or (2) real estate or equipment that is leased to a marijuana-related legitimate business. Immunity from federal criminal prosecution or investigation is granted, subject to certain conditions, to a depository institution that provides financial services to a marijuana-related legitimate business in a state or one of its political subdivisions that allows the cultivation, production, manufacture, sale, transportation, display, dispensing, distribution, or purchase of marijuana. Neither the depository institution nor its officers, directors, nor employees may be held liable under federal law or regulation solely for providing such financial services or further investing income derived from those services. The Department of the Treasury must require any suspicious activity report filed by a financial institution regarding a marijuana-based business to comply with specified guidance of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2015
Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal, beginning with taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017, the excise tax on employer-sponsored health care coverage for which there is an excess benefit (high-cost plans).
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2015
FDA Deeming Authority Clarification Act of 2015 This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to revise premarket review and reporting requirements for products deemed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be tobacco products. A product is not subject to premarket review by the FDA if it is introduced to market before that type of product is deemed a tobacco product. A person introducing a tobacco product that is substantially similar to a marketed product less than 21 months after that type of product is deemed a tobacco product must submit a report to the FDA on the similar product not later than 21 months after that type of product is deemed a tobacco product. (A report is required at least 90 days prior to introduction of a tobacco product that is substantially similar to a marketed product if that type of product has been deemed a tobacco product for 21 months or more.)
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 2015
Condemns the government of Iran's state-sponsored persecution of its Baha'i minority and its continued violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights. Calls on the government of Iran to release the 7 imprisoned Baha'i leaders, the 12 imprisoned Baha'i educators, and all other prisoners held on account of their religion. Urges the President and the Secretary of State to utilize available authorities, including the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, to impose sanctions on officials of the government of Iran and other individuals directly responsible for serious human rights abuses, including abuses against the Baha'i community.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2015
National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2015 Deems a domestic mine that will provide strategic and critical minerals to be an "infrastructure project" as described in Presidential Order "Improving Performance of Federal Permitting and Review of Infrastructure Projects" dated March 22, 2012. Sets forth the responsibilities of the lead agency (federal, state, local, tribal, or Alaska Native Corporation) with responsibility for issuing a mineral exploration or mine permit with respect to project coordination, agency consultation, project proponents, and contractors. Deems the requirements of National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) to have been satisfied if the lead agency determines that any state or federal agency acting pursuant to state or federal statutory or procedural authorities, has or will address specified factors. Requires the lead agency, if it cannot make such a determination, and at a project proponent's request, together with cooperating and other agencies involved in the permitting process to enter into an agreement with the project proponent that sets time limits for each part of the permitting process. Applies this Act to any mineral exploration or mine permit for which an application was submitted before enactment of this Act if the applicant so requests in writing. Requires the lead agency to begin implementing this Act with respect to such application within 30 days after receiving such a request. Requires the lead agency, with respect to strategic and critical minerals within a federally administered unit of the National Forest System, to: (1) exempt from federal regulations governing Special Areas all areas of identified mineral resources in Land Use Designations (other than Non-Development Land Use Designations); (2) apply such exemption to all additional routes and areas that the agency finds necessary to facilitate the construction, operation, maintenance, and restoration of the areas of the identified mineral resources; and (3) continue to apply such exemptions after approval of the Minerals Plan of Operations for the unit. Declares the priority of the lead agency is to maximize mineral resource development while mitigating environmental impacts, so that more of the mineral resource can be brought to the market place. Prescribes the Federal Register notice process for mineral exploration and mining projects. Authorizes the holder of a mineral exploration or mine permit to intervene as of right in any covered civil action by a person affecting rights or obligations of the permit holder under the permit. Bars a civil action claiming legal wrong caused by an agency action unless it is filed by the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date of the final federal agency action to which it relates. Requires the court to hear and determine any covered civil action as expeditiously as possible. Prohibits the court, in a covered civil action, from granting or approving prospective relief unless it finds that such relief is narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct the violation of a legal requirement, and is the least intrusive means necessary to correct such violation. Declares inapplicable to such a civil action specified requirements of the Equal Access to Justice Act relating to award of costs and fees to a prevailing plaintiff. Prohibits payment from the federal government for court costs of a party in such a civil action, including attorneys' fees and expenses. Prohibits construction of this Act as affecting any aspect of Secretarial Order 3324 with respect to potash and oil and gas operators.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2015
Encourages North Korea to allow Korean Americans to meet with their family members from North Korea. Calls on North Korea to take steps to build goodwill that is conducive to peace on the Korean Peninsula.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Mental Health First Aid Act of 2015 Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to award grants to initiate and sustain mental health first aid training programs. Requires such a program to include training on: (1) the skills, resources, and knowledge necessary to assist individuals in crisis to connect with appropriate local mental health care services; (2) mental health resources, including the location of community mental health centers; and (3) protocols for referral to mental health resources. Sets forth the categories of individuals to be trained under the program, including first responders, law enforcement personnel, teachers and school administrators, human resources professionals, faith community leaders, nurses and other primary care personnel, students enrolled in school, parents of students, and veterans. Requires such programs to train individuals to accomplish safe de-escalation of crisis situations, recognition of the signs and symptoms of mental illness, and timely referral to mental health services in the early stages of developing mental disorders. Requires SAMHSA to ensure that grants are equitably distributed geographically, and to pay particular attention to the mental health training needs of rural areas.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Filipino Veterans Recognition Act This bill amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make a payment from the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund to an eligible person who, during the one-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this paragraph, submits to the Secretary: a benefits claim; or with respect to a person who filed a benefits claim during such one-year period, a new claim or an appeal to such previously filed claim. In determining an individual's eligibility to receive Compensation Fund benefits the Secretary shall accept as proof of service an affidavit from the government of the Philippines certifying an eligible individual's service (AGO Form 23). Such an affidavit shall serve as proof of service regardless of whether the eligible individual: submits any other qualifying document, or is included in the Approved Revised Reconstructed Guerilla Roster of 1948, (Missouri List). The Secretary may not accept such an affidavit as proof of service for any VA benefit other than the Compensation Fund. Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing additional amounts to be appropriated to the Compensation Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Ensuring Children’s Access to Specialty Care Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to include pediatric subspecialties in primary health services for purposes of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC). Psychiatrists who are pediatric subspecialists are included in behavioral and mental health professionals. (These amendments make pediatric subspecialists, including psychiatrists, eligible for the NHSC fellowship program for the delivery of primary health services in health professional shortage areas, the NHSC Scholarship Program, and the NHSC Loan Repayment Program.) “Health professional shortage area” can mean an underserved population of children and adolescents.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Small Business Tax Equity Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt a trade or business that conducts marijuana sales in compliance with state law from the prohibition against allowing business-related tax credits or deductions for expenditures in connection with trafficking in controlled substances.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the House should strive to create, debate, and adopt policy solutions to achieve a National Strategic Agenda with the goals of: creating 25 million new jobs over the next 10 years, balancing the federal budget by 2030, securing Medicare and Social Security for the next 75 years, and making the United States energy secure by 2024.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2015
Indian Health Service Health Professions Tax Fairness Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income amounts received under the Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program and the Indian Health Professions Scholarships Program.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2015
Eastern Nevada Land Implementation Improvement Act Amends the Lincoln County Land Act of 2000 (the Act) to require implementation of a multispecies habitat conservation plan in Lincoln County, Nevada. Amends the Act and the Lincoln County Conservation, Recreation, and Development Act of 2004 to make certain amounts available for comprehensive, cost-effective, and multijurisdictional hazardous fuels reduction projects and wildfire prevention planning (particularly for pinyon-juniper dominated landscapes) and other rangeland and woodland restoration projects within the county, consistent with the Ely Resource Management Plan and subject to approval by the Department of the Interior. Requires establishment of cooperative agreements between the Bureau of Land Management and Lincoln County for certain county-provided law enforcement and planning related activities. Requires the use of a portion of proceeds from land sales under both Acts for the Lincoln County Regional Development Authority. Excludes specified public land within certain utility corridors in Lincoln and Clark Counties, Nevada, from being withdrawn from public land, mining, and mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws. Amends the Pam White Wilderness Act to adjust the boundary of the Mt. Moriah Wilderness to include specified lands. Adjusts the boundary of the High Schells Wilderness to include and exclude specified lands. Amends the Nevada Wilderness Protection Act of 1989 to adjust the boundary of the Arc Dome Wilderness to exclude specified land. Amends the Mesquite Lands Act of 1988 to require the proceeds of the sales of certain parcels of land by Interior to the city of Mesquite, Nevada, to be made available for use for the development and implementation of a conservation plan to benefit fish and wildlife species of the Virgin River in Clark County (rather than, as currently, for development of a multispecies habitat conservation plan).
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2015
Veteran Emergency Medical Technician Support Act of 2015 Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a demonstration program for states with a shortage of emergency medical technicians (EMTs) to streamline state requirements and procedures to assist veterans who completed military EMT training to meet state EMT certification, licensure, and other requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2015
Vulnerable Veterans Housing Reform Act of 2015 Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to exclude as family income for Department of Housing and Urban Development housing assistance purposes any Department of Veterans Affairs payments made to veterans in need of regular aid and attendance for expenses related to such aid and attendance.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2015
James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Reauthorization Act Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program Fund indefinitely and index appropriations to the medical care component of the consumer price index for urban consumers. Makes funding available for: a quality assurance program for services delivered by health care providers, the WTC Program annual report, WTC Health Program Steering Committees, and contracts with Clinical Centers of Excellence. Amends the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act to make individuals (or relatives of deceased individuals) who were injured or killed in the rescue and recovery efforts after the aircraft crashes of September 11, 2001, eligible for compensation under the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. Allows individuals to file claims for compensation under the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 anytime after regulations are updated based on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010. Removes the cap on payments under the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. Adds the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund and World Trade Center Health Program Fund to the list of accounts that are not subject to budget sequestration.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2015
Occupational Therapy in Mental Health Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to include occupational therapists as behavioral and mental health professionals for purposes of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), thereby making occupational therapists eligible for the NHSC fellowship program for the delivery of primary health services in health professional shortage areas, the NHSC Scholarship Program, and the NHSC Loan Repayment Program. This amendment applies only in fiscal years when funding for NHSC programs is greater than FY2015 funding.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2015
Dental Insurance Fairness Act of 2015 Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to prescribe certain health care coverage value requirements for dental benefits under self-insured group health plans.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2015
United States Coast Guard Commemorative Coin Act Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue in commemoration of the United States Coast Guard: (1) $5 gold coins, (2) $1 silver coins, and (3) half-dollar clad coins. Requires the design of such coins to be emblematic of the traditions, history, and heritage of the Coast Guard, and its role in securing our nation since 1790. Prescribes design requirements. Restricts the issuance of such coins to the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2018. Prescribes the sale price of the coins and coin surcharges. Requires such surcharges to be paid by the Secretary to the National Coast Guard Museum Association to help finance the design and construction of the National Coast Guard Museum. Directs the Secretary to ensure that minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in any net cost to the federal government.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2015
Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax-exempt charitable or educational organizations to make collegiate housing and infrastructure improvement grants to certain tax-exempt social clubs (e.g., college fraternities and sororities) which apply such grants to their collegiate housing property.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2015
Second Amendment Enforcement Act of 2015 Declares that nothing in a certain prohibition against killing wild birds and wild animals in the District of Columbia, or any other provision of law, shall authorize or be construed to permit the District of Columbia Council, the Mayor, or any District governmental or regulatory authority to prohibit or unduly burden the ability of persons otherwise not prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law from acquiring or using for lawful purposes any firearm neither prohibited by federal law nor subject to the National Firearms Act. Denies the District any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms for legitimate purposes. Amends the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 (FCRA) to repeal the District's registration requirement for possession of firearms. Maintains the current ban on the possession and control of a sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, or short-barreled rifle. Prohibits dealing, importing, or manufacturing firearms without complying with federal law requirements. Declares that, in the case of a sale or transfer of a handgun to a District resident, a federally licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer of firearms in Maryland or Virginia shall be treated as a dealer licensed in the District if certain requirements are met. Prohibits selling, transferring or otherwise disposing of any firearm or ammunition to any person if the sellers or transferors know that such person is prohibited by federal law from possessing or receiving it. Bars individuals prohibited by federal law from possessing a firearm in the District. Repeals specified District policies and requirements regarding the keeping or storing of firearms. Eliminates criminal penalties for possession of unregistered firearms. Amends the District of Columbia Code to: (1) allow District property owners to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on their property, (2) authorize certain individuals to carry firearms in certain places and for certain purposes, (3) prescribe requirements for lawful transportation of firearms, and (4) prohibit the use of toy and antique pistols to commit a violent or dangerous crime. Authorizes the District to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms, except to certain lessees, within any building or structure under its control, or in any area of it, which has implemented security measures to identify and exclude unauthorized or hazardous persons or articles. Requires the District Chief of Police to issue a five-year license to carry a concealed pistol on or about the person to any qualified individual who completes the application process. Repeals: (1) FCRA requirements that a gun offender register and verify certain identifiable information with the Chief; and (2) specified District of Columbia Acts, in order to conform with this Act. Restores and revives any provision of law amended or repealed by such Acts as if they had not been enacted into law.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Military Sexual Assault Victims Empowerment Act or the Military SAVE Act This bill amends the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to make eligible for treatment in a non-Department of Veterans Affairs entity any veteran who was the victim of a sexual trauma which occurred while the veteran was serving on active duty, active duty for training, or inactive duty training.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Protecting Affordable Coverage for Employees Act This bill amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and Public Health Service Act to include employers with 51 to 100 employees as large employers for purposes of health insurance markets. States have the option to treat these employers as small employers. Currently under PPACA, employers with 51 to 100 employees are small employers, but before January 1, 2016, states have the option to treat them as large employers. (Under PPACA, health insurance offered in the small group market must meet certain requirements that do not apply to the large group market, including the requirement to cover the essential health benefits.)
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Charlotte's Web Medical Access Act of 2015 Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to exclude cannabidiol and cannabidiol-rich plants: (1) from the definition of "marihuana," and (2) from treatment as a controlled substance under such Act. Defines: (1) "cannabidiol-rich plant" to mean the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of such plant with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3% on a dry weight basis; and (2) "cannabidiol" to mean the substance cannabidiol, as derived from a cannabidiol-rich plant. Exempts cannabidiol or cannabidiol-rich plants from the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Declares that nothing in this Act shall restrict any activities related to the use, production, or distribution of marihuana in a state in which such activities are legal under state law. Terminates this Act three years after its enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Lymphedema Treatment Act This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cover certain lymphedema compression treatment items as durable medical equipment under Medicare. (Lymphedema is a condition of localized fluid retention and tissue swelling that is caused when the lymphatic system is damaged or blocked.)
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act This bill amends the definition of "spouse" for purposes of veterans' benefits to require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to recognize a marriage based on the law of the state where the marriage occurred. When a marriage occurs outside a state, the VA shall recognize it if the marriage is lawful in the place where it occurs and could have been entered into under the laws of any state.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Patients' Access to Treatments Act of 2015 Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish cost-sharing limits for health plans that cover prescription drugs and use a formulary or other tiered cost-sharing structure. Prohibits such a health plan from imposing higher cost-sharing requirements, including co-payment and co-insurance, for specialty drugs than for other prescription drugs in a non-preferred brand drug tier. Applies the non-preferred brand drug tier for which beneficiary cost-sharing is lowest, if a formulary used by the health plan contains more than one non-preferred brand drug tier.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Intermountain West Corridor Development Act of 2015 This bill amends the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 to designate as a high priority corridor on the National Highway System, as part of Interstate Route I-11, the Intermountain West Corridor from the vicinity of Las Vegas, Nevada, extending: north along U.S. Route 95, terminating at Interstate Route 80; and south from the vicinity of Wickenburg to Interstate Route 10 and continuing south toward the Tucson vicinity to the Nogales, Arizona, region; and establishing an international trade corridor by employing Interstates in existence on the date of enactment of this Act or new alignments to be determined through appropriate studies.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2015
Biennial Budgeting and Enhanced Oversight Act of 2015 This bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Congressional Budget Impoundment and Control Act of 1974, and the Rules of the House of Representatives to change the process for the President's budget submission, congressional budget resolutions, appropriations bills, and government strategic and performance plans from the current annual process to a biennial process, in which a biennium is the two consecutive fiscal years beginning on October 1 of any odd-numbered year. The House Budget Committee must use the second session of each Congress to study issues with long-term budgetary and economic implications. The bill creates a point of order in the House and Senate against authorizations of appropriations that do not include specific authorizations covering at least each fiscal year in one or more bienniums.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2015
Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to deem an individual receiving outpatient observation services in a hospital to be an inpatient with respect to satisfying the three-day inpatient hospital requirement in order to entitle the individual to Medicare coverage of any post-hospital extended care services in a skilled nursing facility.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2015
Health Outcomes, Planning, and Education (HOPE) for Alzheimer's Act of 2015 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cover comprehensive Alzheimer's disease care planning services.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2015
Veterans Education Tax Security Act of 2015 or the VETS Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the gross income of a veteran with a service-connected disability rated as total, or from the gross income of a parent or cosigner of a deceased veteran, income imputed from the discharge of student loan amounts under the Higher Education Act of 1965.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2015
Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSAct) to: (1) remove sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology from the determination of annual conversion factors in the formula for payment for physicians' services, and (2) revise the update in rates for 2015 and subsequent years. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Merit-based Incentive Payment (MIP) system under which eligible professionals (including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and certified registered nurse anesthetists) shall receive annual payment increases or decreases based on their performance. Requires specified incentive payments to eligible participants in an alternative payment model. Requires the Secretary to: (1) draft a plan for development of quality measures to assess professionals, including non-patient-facing professionals; and (2) make payments for chronic care management services. Expands the kinds of uses of Medicare data available to qualified entities. Directs the Secretary to provide Medicare data to qualified clinical data registries to facilitate quality improvement or patient safety. Declares it a national objective to achieve widespread exchange of health information through interoperable certified electronic health records technology nationwide by December 31, 2018. Extends through calendar 2017 specified elements of Medicare funding. Prescribes requirements for reasonable cost reimbursement contracts that may no longer be extended or renewed. Amends SSAct title XIX (Medicaid) to extend permanently the qualifying individual program and the transitional medical assistance program. Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend certain special diabetes programs. Amends SSAct title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to extend: (1) abstinence education; (2) personal responsibility education program; (3) family-to-family health information centers; and (4) maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs. Amends SSAct title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (CHIP) to extend the CHIP program through FY2017. Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) deny Medigap policies to Medicare beneficiaries newly eligible on or after January 1, 2020; and (2) set 1% market basket percentage increases or annual updates for hospice, long-term care hospital, and other providers. Revises or sets the aggregate reductions in Medicaid disproportionate share hospital allotments for FY2018-FY2025. Prohibits the inclusion of Social Security numbers on Medicare cards. Directs the Secretary to establish procedures to ensure that Medicare payments are not furnished to incarcerated individuals, individuals not lawfully present in the United States, and deceased individuals. Requires the use of Medicare beneficiary smart cards, subject to certain conditions. Requires valid prescriber national provider identifiers on pharmacy claims. Requires medical review of spinal subluxation services by a chiropractor. Eliminates the availability of certain funds for the Medicare Improvement Fund. Amends the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 to extend through FY2015 the two-midnight rule regarding certain medical patient status review activities. (The two-midnight rule allows Medicare coverage of only hospital stays for which a physician admits to a hospital a beneficiary expected to require care that crosses two midnights, but generally denies coverage of care expected to require less than a two-midnight stay.) Requires bid surety bonds and state licensure for entities submitting bids under a competitive durable medical equipment and prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies acquisition program. Prohibits the Secretary from implementing the final rule requiring the transition of all 10-day and 90-day global surgical packages to 0-day global periods. Extends through FY2015 the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2015
Lieutenant Osvaldo Albarati Correctional Officer Self-Protection Act of 2015 Amends the federal criminal code to require the Bureau of Prisons to ensure that each chief executive officer of a federal penal or correctional institution: (1) provides a secure storage area located outside of the secure perimeter of the institution for qualified law enforcement officers employed by the Bureau to store firearms, or allows such officers to store firearms in a vehicle lockbox approved by the Bureau; and (2) allows such officers to carry concealed firearms on the premises outside of the secure perimeter of the institution.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2015
Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States Act of 2015 or the CARERS Act of 2015 Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to provide that control and enforcement provisions of such Act relating to marihuana shall not apply to any person acting in compliance with state law relating to the production, possession, distribution, dispensation, administration, laboratory testing, or delivery of medical marihuana. Transfers marihuana from schedule I to schedule II of the CSA. Excludes "cannabidiol" from the definition of "marihuana" and defines it separately as the substance cannabidiol, as derived from marihuana or the synthetic formulation, that contains not greater than 0.3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol on a dry weight basis. Deems marihuana that is grown or possessed for purposes of making cannabidiol, in accordance with state law, to meet such concentration limitation unless the Attorney General determines that the state law is not reasonably calculated to comply with such definition. Prohibits a federal banking regulator from: (1) terminating or limiting the deposit insurance of a depository institution solely because it provides or has provided financial services to a marihuana-related legitimate business; or (2) prohibiting, penalizing, or otherwise discouraging a depository institution from providing financial services to a marihuana-related legitimate business. Prohibits a federal banking regulator from recommending, motivating, providing incentives, or encouraging a depository institution not to offer financial services to an individual, or to downgrade or cancel financial services offered to an individual, solely because: (1) the individual is a manufacturer of marihuana, (2) the individual is or later becomes an owner or operator of a marihuana-related legitimate business, or (3) the depository institution was not aware that the individual is the owner or operator of a marihuana-related legitimate business. Prohibits a federal banking regulator from taking any adverse or corrective supervisory action on a loan to an owner or operator of: (1) a marihuana-related legitimate business soley because the owner or operator is such a business, or (2) real estate or equipment that is leased to a marihuana-related legitimate business solely because it is leased to such a business. Provides depository institutions that provide financial services to a marihuana-related legitimate business protection under federal law from federal criminal prosecution or investigation, criminal penalties, and forfeiture of legal interest in collateral solely for providing financial services to such a business. Directs: (1) the Department of Health and Human Services to terminate the Public Health Service interdisciplinary review process described in the guidance entitled "Guidance on Procedures for the Provision of marihuana for Medical Research" (issued on May 21, 1999), and (2) the Drug Enforcement Administration to issue at least three licenses under CSA registration requirements to manufacture marihuana and marihuana-derivatives for research approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to authorize VA health care providers to provide veterans with recommendations and opinions regarding participation in state marihuana programs.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2015
Medicare Orthotics and Prosthetics Improvement Act of 2015 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit payment under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) for an item or service furnished: (1) in a state that requires licensure unless the provider or supplier possesses all applicable state licensure, or (2) in a state that does not require licensure unless the provider or supplier meets all qualifications established by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The Secretary shall designate and approve independent accreditation organizations that apply quality standards for suppliers only if they are Boards for Orthotist/Prosthetist Certification or essentially equivalent programs. Special payment rules for certain prosthetics and custom-fabricated orthotics are extended to custom-fitted orthotics. Such rules do not apply, however, to off-the-shelf orthotics furnished on or after January 1, 2016, which are included in a competitive acquisition program. Decisions about Medicare coverage of orthotics and prosthetics on or after January 1, 2016, must take into account the complexity of the item as well as supplier qualifications (which do not apply, however, to physicians, occupational therapists, or physical therapists state-licensed to provide such items). Documentation created by an orthotist or prosthetist is considered part of the patient's medical record. Requirements for suppliers of orthotics and prosthetics are separated from those for suppliers of durable medical equipment. Orthotists and prosthetists must have a supplier number for Medicare payment to be made. Patients are not liable for payment of furnished orthotics or prosthetics where payment may not be made or where payment is denied. Only the orthotists or prosthetists are liable in such circumstances. The Secretary must publish on the Internet website of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services specified performance information about each recovery audit contractor (RAC). The Secretary is prohibited from recouping more than 50% of any overpayments for qualified providers and hospitals in response to a RAC audit until an administrative law judge has rendered a decision. The Secretary may recoup any overpayments, though, related to or resulting from fraudulent activity on the part of a Medicare provider or supplier. Only the patient may make the minimal self-adjustment required to qualify off-the-shelf orthotics for Medicare coverage in a competitive acquisition program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2015
Medicare Audit Improvement Act of 2015 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require that any records or documentation of an orthotist or prosthetist who furnished an orthotic, prosthetic, or prosthetic device to an individual shall be considered part of the individual's medical record in determining whether the item is reasonable and necessary. Medicare administrative contractors (MACs) shall determine that payment may not be made to a supplier of durable medical equipment (DME) or of orthotics and prosthetics for which a claim is made because the supplier does not meet requirements for licensing or accreditation by a National Board. Recovery audit contractors (RACs) shall consider an overpayment that must be recouped any payment for DME, orthotics, or prosthetics that should not have been made because the supplier failed to meet licensing or accreditation criteria. RACs are prohibited from reviewing payments for certain DME, orthotics, or prosthetics to which prior Medicare authorization applies. The Secretary of Health and Human Services must report annually to Congress certain information on determinations by MACs that payment cannot be made, and by RACs that payment should not have been made, under Medicare for items and services. Payment is prohibited under part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of Medicare for orthotics and prosthetics furnished by a supplier without a supplier number. To obtain such a number a supplier must meet specified criteria. The Secretary must: (1) review annually the coverage and utilization of orthotics and prosthetics to determine whether they should be subjected to coverage and utilization review criteria, and if appropriate (2) develop and apply such criteria. Patients are not liable for payment of furnished orthotics and prosthetics which are not reasonable and necessary for the diagnosis or treatment of illness or injury or to improve the functioning of a malformed body member. Competitive acquisition programs shall not apply to off-the-shelf items and services furnished by certain orthotists or prosthetists who are either licensed or, in a state without licensing requirements, meet specified training, education, certification, or credentialing criteria. Recoupment of payments to a qualifying provider or supplier may not be made before completion of an administrative law judge appeals process. Payment under Medicare is denied to suppliers and providers unless they meet certain licensing or other qualifications.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2015
Honor the Nevada Enabling Act of 1864 Act Directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of the Interior to convey, in phases and without consideration, to the state of Nevada all interest of the United States in federal lands owned, managed, or controlled by the federal government through the USDA or Interior for the purpose of permitting the state to use them to support select beneficiaries. Specifies exceptions, including components of the National Wilderness Preservation System, National Park System, and National Wildlife System, and federally recognized Indian reservations and lands. Defines "select beneficiaries" as public elementary and secondary education; public higher education; public specialized education; public mental and medical health services; social, senior, and veterans services; public programs for recovery plan development and implementation for candidate and threatened or endangered species; and political subdivisions of the state, but only with respect to payment for services and infrastructure on conveyed identified federal lands that would otherwise be financed through property taxes or other revenues available to a political subdivision of the state.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2015
Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance Act of 2015 Authorizes a Wall of Remembrance, as part of the previously authorized Korean War Veterans Memorial, to include: (1) a list by name of members of the U.S. Armed Forces who were killed in action; (2) the number of members who were wounded, listed as missing in action, or prisoners of war; and (3) the number of members of the Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army, the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, and the other nations of the United Nations (U.N.) Command who were killed, wounded, missing, or prisoners. Prohibits using any federal funds to construct the Wall.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2015
Protecting Our Infants Act of 2015 This bill requires the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to report on prenatal opioid abuse and neonatal abstinence syndrome (symptoms of withdrawal in a newborn). (An opioid is a drug with effects similar to opium, such as heroin or certain pain medications.) The report must include: an assessment of existing research on neonatal abstinence syndrome; an evaluation of the causes, and barriers to treatment, of opioid use disorders among women of reproductive age; an evaluation of treatment for pregnant women with opioid use disorders and infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome; and recommendations on preventing, identifying, and treating opioid dependency in women and neonatal abstinence syndrome. The Department of Health and Human Services must review its activities related to prenatal opioid use and neonatal abstinence syndrome and develop a strategy to address gaps in research and programs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must provide technical assistance to states to improve neonatal abstinence syndrome surveillance and make surveillance data publicly available.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2015
Policyholder Protection Act of 2015 This bill amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to declare that any action of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) that requires a bank holding company to provide funds or other assets to a subsidiary depository institution is neither effective nor enforceable with respect to a savings and loan holding company that is also an insurance company, an affiliate of an insured depository institution that is an insurance company, or any other company that is an insurance company and directly or indirectly controls an insured depository institution (entities) if: such funds or assets are to be provided by the entity, and the relevant state insurance authority determines that such an action would have a materially adverse effect on the entity's financial condition. The bill declares that requiring a bank holding company that is an insurance company to serve as a source of financial strength shall be deemed the kind of action of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System that requires a bank holding company to provide funds or other assets to a subsidiary depository institution for specified purposes of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is amended, with respect to systemic risk determination and the treatment of insurance companies and their subsidiaries, to authorize the FDIC to stand in the place of the appropriate regulatory agency and file a judicial action to place such companies into orderly rehabilitation under state law if the appropriate regulatory agency has not done so. The FDIC, when funding the orderly liquidation of an insurance company or its subsidiary, shall notify the relevant state insurance authority promptly of its intention to take a lien on the company's assets. The FDIC may not take such a lien, however, if the state insurance authority informs it that doing so would have a materially adverse effect upon the insurance company's policyholders.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2015
SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSAct) to: (1) remove sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology from the determination of annual conversion factors in the formula for payment for physicians' services, and (2) revise the update in rates for 2015 and subsequent years. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Merit-based Incentive Payment (MIP) system under which eligible professionals (including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and certified registered nurse anesthetists) shall receive annual payment increases or decreases based on their performance. Requires specified incentive payments to eligible participants in an alternative payment model. Requires the Secretary to: (1) draft a plan for development of quality measures to assess professionals, including non-patient-facing professionals; and (2) make payments for chronic care management services. Expands the kinds of uses of Medicare data available to qualified entities. Directs the Secretary to provide Medicare data to qualified clinical data registries to facilitate quality improvement or patient safety. Declares it a national objective to achieve widespread exchange of health information through interoperable certified electronic health records technology nationwide by December 31, 2018.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2015
Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality and Access Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require alignment of updates for ambulatory surgical center (ASC) services under a revised prospective payment system (PPS) with updates for hospital outpatient department (OPD) services. Revises requirements for the reporting and applying of quality measure data by ASCs and hospital OPDs. Revises requirements for the composition of the expert outside advisory panel the Secretary of Health and Human Services is required to consult during the annual review of the clinical integrity of the groups and payment weights in the PPS for OPD services. Requires the panel to include suppliers subject to the PPS as well as at least one ASC representative. Requires the Secretary, when excluding from a final rule updating ASC lists a procedure whose inclusion was requested during the public comment period, to cite in the final rule specific criteria based on which the procedure was excluded. Requires the Secretary also to identify the peer reviewed research or the evidence upon which the exclusion is based if certain of those criteria are cited for it. Prohibits the Secretary from using or citing as a criterion or a basis for an exclusion that the procedure can only be reported using a Current Procedural Terminology unlisted surgical procedure code.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2015
Medicare CGM Access Act of 2015 - This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide Medicare coverage of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices furnished to a CGM qualified individual. The Department of Health and Human Services must establish a fee schedule and ensure that CGM qualified individuals are furnished with appropriate device components.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2015
Credit Union Residential Loan Parity Act Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to revise the definition of "member business loan," which currently excludes an extension of credit fully secured by a lien on a 1- to 4-family dwelling that is a member's primary residence. Removes the condition that the dwelling be a member's primary residence, and so denying eligibility for a member business loan to any requested extension of credit that would be fully secured by a lien on a 1- to 4-family dwelling, regardless of whether it is or is not the member's primary residence. Declares that this Act does not preclude the National Credit Union Administration from treating an extension of credit fully secured by a lien on a 1- to 4-family dwelling that is not a member's primary residence as a member business loan for purposes other than certain member business loan limitation requirements under the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2015
Calls on the President to work toward: (1) equitable and durable Armenian-Turkish relations based upon Turkey's acknowledgment of the facts and consequences of the Armenian Genocide, and (2) a comprehensive international resolution of this crime against humanity.
![Official portrait of Rep. Heck, Joseph J. [R-NV-3]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h001055_200.jpg)