The House Ways and Means Committee approved bills on Wednesday that were introduced by U.S. Reps. Jim Renacci (R-OH) and Pat Tiberi (R-OH) as part of an effort to advance commonsense solutions.
The committee approved two bills introduced by Tiberi – the Sustaining Healthcare Integrity and Fair Treatment (SHIFT) Act, H.R. 5713, and H.R. 3608, a bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt aircraft management services from an excise tax on airfare.
“H.R. 5713, the Sustaining Healthcare Integrity and Fair Treatment Act, the SHIFT Act, will give relief to all (Long-term Care Hospitals) from the 25 percent rule,” Tiberi, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, said. “This CMS rule, which has been delayed for 10 years, allows for no more than 25 percent of patients to come from one inpatient acute hospital in one quarter. My bill will reinstate the 50 percent threshold that was in effect prior to July 1, 2016, and delay the rule for nine months.”
The Social Security Mail Tax Act, H.R. 5320, introduced by Renacci in an effort to prevent identity theft, would require the Social Security Administration (SSA) to remove Social Security numbers from mailers when they are deemed unnecessary.
“I am pleased this bill was passed out of the Ways and Means Committee and will now be reported to the full House of Representatives,” Renacci said. “As a personal victim of identity theft and after hearing many similar stories from American taxpayers, I know that this commonsense legislation is vital in safeguarding Americans from identity loss.”
The SSA mailed 233 million documents in 2015 that contained the full Social Security numbers of recipients.