Index for HR3962: Affordable Health Care for America Act

To provide affordable, quality health care for all Americans and reduce the growth in health care spending, and for other purposes.

Mr. Dingell (for himself, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Waxman, Mr. George Miller of California, Mr. Stark, Mr. Pallone, and Mr. Andrews) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, Education and Labor, Oversight and Government Reform, and the Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

(a) Establishment.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a temporary reinsurance program (in this section referred to as the “reinsurance program”) to provide reimbursement to assist participating employment-based plans with the cost of providing health benefits to retirees and to eligible spouses, surviving spouses and dependents of such retirees.

(2) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:

(A) The term “eligible employment-based plan” means a group health plan or employment-based health plan that—

(i) is —

(I) maintained by one or more employers (including without limitation any State or political subdivision thereof, or any agency or instrumentality of any of the foregoing), former employers or employee organizations or associations, or a voluntary employees’ beneficiary association, or a committee or board of individuals appointed to administer such plan; or

(II) a multiemployer plan (as defined in section 3(37) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974); and

(ii) provides health benefits to retirees.

(B) The term “health benefits” means medical, surgical, hospital, prescription drug, and such other benefits as shall be determined by the Secretary, whether self-funded or delivered through the purchase of insurance or otherwise.

(C) The term “participating employment-based plan” means an eligible employment-based plan that is participating in the reinsurance program.

(D) The term “retiree” means, with respect to a participating employment-benefit plan, an individual who—

(i) is 55 years of age or older;

(ii) is not eligible for coverage under title XVIII of the Social Security Act; and

(iii) is not an active employee of an employer maintaining the plan or of any employer that makes or has made substantial contributions to fund such plan.

(E) The term “Secretary” means Secretary of Health and Human Services.

(b) Participation.—To be eligible to participate in the reinsurance program, an eligible employment-based plan shall submit to the Secretary an application for participation in the program, at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary shall require.

(c) Payment.—

(1) SUBMISSION OF CLAIMS.—

(A) IN GENERAL.—Under the reinsurance program, a participating employment-based plan shall submit claims for reimbursement to the Secretary which shall contain documentation of the actual costs of the items and services for which each claim is being submitted.

(B) BASIS FOR CLAIMS.—Each claim submitted under subparagraph (A) shall be based on the actual amount expended by the participating employment-based plan involved within the plan year for the appropriate employment based health benefits provided to a retiree or to the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent of a retiree. In determining the amount of any claim for purposes of this subsection, the participating employment-based plan shall take into account any negotiated price concessions (such as discounts, direct or indirect subsidies, rebates, and direct or indirect remunerations) obtained by such plan with respect to such health benefits. For purposes of calculating the amount of any claim, the costs paid by the retiree or by the spouse, surviving spouse, or dependent of the retiree in the form of deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance shall be included along with the amounts paid by the participating employment-based plan.

(2) PROGRAM PAYMENTS AND LIMIT.—If the Secretary determines that a participating employment-based plan has submitted a valid claim under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall reimburse such plan for 80 percent of that portion of the costs attributable to such claim that exceeds $15,000, but is less than $90,000. Such amounts shall be adjusted each year based on the percentage increase in the medical care component of the Consumer Price Index (rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000) for the year involved.

(3) USE OF PAYMENTS.—Amounts paid to a participating employment-based plan under this subsection shall only be used to reduce the costs of health care provided by the plan by reducing premium costs for the employer or employee association maintaining the plan, and reducing premium contributions, deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, or other out-of-pocket costs for plan participants and beneficiaries. Where the benefits are provided by an employer to members of a represented bargaining unit, the allocation of payments among these purposes shall be subject to collective bargaining. Amounts paid to the plan under this subsection shall not be used as general revenues by the employer or employee association maintaining the plan or for any other purposes. The Secretary shall develop a mechanism to monitor the appropriate use of such payments by such plans.

(4) APPEALS AND PROGRAM PROTECTIONS.—The Secretary shall establish—

(A) an appeals process to permit participating employment-based plans to appeal a determination of the Secretary with respect to claims submitted under this section; and

(B) procedures to protect against fraud, waste, and abuse under the program.

(5) AUDITS.—The Secretary shall conduct annual audits of claims data submitted by participating employment-based plans under this section to ensure that they are in compliance with the requirements of this section.

(d) Retiree Reserve Trust Fund.—

(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—

(A) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the “Retiree Reserve Trust Fund” (referred to in this section as the “Trust Fund”), that shall consist of such amounts as may be appropriated or credited to the Trust Fund as provided for in this subsection to enable the Secretary to carry out the reinsurance program. Such amounts shall remain available until expended.

(B) FUNDING.—There are hereby appropriated to the Trust Fund, out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, an amount requested by the Secretary as necessary to carry out this section, except that the total of all such amounts requested shall not exceed $10,000,000,000.

(C) APPROPRIATIONS FROM THE TRUST FUND.—

(i) IN GENERAL.—Amounts in the Trust Fund are appropriated to provide funding to carry out the reinsurance program and shall be used to carry out such program.

(ii) LIMITATION TO AVAILABLE FUNDS.—The Secretary has the authority to stop taking applications for participation in the program or take such other steps in reducing expenditures under the reinsurance program in order to ensure that expenditures under the reinsurance program do not exceed the funds available under this subsection.