A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to include dental care, eye care, hearing aids, physical checkups, and foot care among the items and services for which payment may be made under the supplementary medical insurance program, and to provide safeguards against consumer abuse in the provision of these items and services.

Summary

Amends Title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide payment under the supplementary medical insurance program for one comprehensive physical examination a year, dental care including dentures, eye examinations including eyeglasses, hearing aids including examination, treatment of foot conditions. Directs the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to take steps to eliminate unnecessary or excessive medical appliance expenditures under the Medicare program by implementing appliance leasing, auditing of medical appliance manufacturers and providers, and by cross-referencing prevailing medical appliance rates. Includes under the term "medical appliance" hearing aids, eyeglasses, dentures, and similar health aids. States that the Federal Trade Commission should continue and increase scrutiny of the medical appliance industries in the interest of consumer protection. States that the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare should provide increased assistance to encourage the continuing education and training of hearing specialists, clinical audiologists, and physicians to improve the quality of hearing care, and to encourage the provision by State local governments of more and better hearing care for the elderly, including a network of examination and treatment sites.

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Timeline

1. 22 March 1977

   Introduced

   Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means.

   Source: IntroReferral

2. 22 March 1977

   Introduced

   Introduced in House

   Source: IntroReferral

3. 22 March 1977

   Introduced

   Introduced in House

   Source: IntroReferral

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

No version snapshots stored. Document URLs remain at the source.

Documents

1 official file

• Introduced in House

  summary · EN · 22 March 1977

  Open at official source

Sponsors

• Rep. Pepper, Claude [D-FL-14] · D · Sponsor
• Rep. Anderson, Glenn M. [D-CA-32] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Badillo, Herman [D-NY-21] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Baucus, Max [D-MT-1] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Bingham, Jonathan B. [D-NY-22] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Bonior, David E. [D-MI-12] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Brodhead, William [D-MI-17] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Carney, Charles J. [D-OH-19] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Collins, Cardiss [D-IL-7] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Clay, William (Bill) [D-MO-1] · D · Cosponsor
• JOHN CONYERS · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Coughlin, Lawrence [R-PA-13] · R · Cosponsor
• Rep. Dellums, Ronald V. [D-CA-8] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Diggs, Charles C., Jr. [D-MI-13] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Duncan, John J. [R-TN-2] · R · Cosponsor
• Rep. Edgar, Robert W. [D-PA-7] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Edwards, Don [D-CA-10] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Ford, William D. [D-MI-15] · D · Cosponsor
• Rep. Gilman, Benjamin A. [R-NY-26] · R · Cosponsor
• Rep. Harkin, Tom [D-IA-5] · D · Cosponsor
• · hsif00 · Standing
• · hswm00 · Standing

Related records

• related to → A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to include dental care, eye care, hearing aids, physical checkups, and foot care among the items and services for which payment may be made under the supplementary medical insurance program, and to provide safeguards against consumer abuse in the provision of these items and services.