Roskam’s bipartisan Medicare anti-fraud bill gains House approval

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Fighting Fraud to Protect Care for Seniors Act of 2018, which U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) re-introduced last month to initiate smart card technology testing to reduce Medicare scams against the nation’s senior citizens.

“Despite advancements in technology, predictive modeling and authentication security, we have yet to see our healthcare payment systems evolve and adopt innovative tools,” said Rep. Roskam during remarks prior to the House’s voice vote on Sept. 12.

“This bipartisan bill will help update Medicare to protect seniors by using credit card style anti-fraud technology,” he added, and would empower the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) “to use smart chip technology to verify a beneficiary and the service they receive.”

U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and John Shimkus (R-IL) are among H.R. 6690’s five cosponsors.

According to the congressional record summary of H.R. 6690, CMS would be required to establish a pilot program to evaluate the feasibility of using smart card technology to address Medicare fraud. Under the program, smart card technology must be issued free-of-charge to selected Medicare beneficiaries, suppliers and providers, and the technology must support the secure, electronic authentication of beneficiary identity at points of service, the summary said. In selecting program participants, the CMS must consider the risk of fraud, waste, or abuse among categories of suppliers and providers.

H.R. 6690 has garnered support from numerous national organizations and companies.

“Older Americans are particularly vulnerable to the dangers of identity theft because Medicare cards visibly contain the beneficiary’s Social Security Number (SSN),” wrote Joyce Rogers, AARP senior vice president for government affairs in an Aug. 29 letter sent to Reps. Roskam and Blumenauer. “This technology deserves to be tested and evaluated. Combating fraud and abuse is about more than just saving money, it is about protecting beneficiaries and improving care.”

Several free-market, fiscally conservative organizations also wrote a joint Sept. 4 letter offering “enthusiastic support” for the lawmakers’ efforts to combat fraud in government healthcare programs via smart card technologies.

“Your legislation … is an excellent starting point for introducing these proven private-sector fraud prevention and detection tools more fully into the public sector,” wrote company executives. “We urge members of Congress to give H.R. 6690 the momentum and support it deserves, through hearings and floor votes.

“Current improper payment reduction efforts will likely continue to produce only incremental gains for taxpayers over periods of years, even decades. The federal government must do better, and H.R. 6690 is one vital way of demonstrating this commitment to taxpayers,” according to their letter, which was signed by Pete Sepp, president of the National Taxpayers Union; Tom Schatz, president of the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste; Jonathan Bydlak, president of the Coalition to Reduce Spending; James Martin, founder and chairman of the 60 Plus Association; Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute; Saul Anuzis, president of the 60 Plus Association; David Williams, president at the Taxpayers Protection Alliance; and Matthew Kandrach, president for Consumer Action for a Strong Economy.

Kelli Emerick, executive director at the Secure ID Coalition, said, “We can do so much to help save Medicare and protect seniors through basic authentication; we just need to get started.”

Emerick noted in her Aug. 30 letter to Reps. Roskam and Blumenauer that the proposed pilot program under H.R. 6690 could “take Medicare accountability to the next level and begin to reduce the waste, fraud and abuse that plague the Medicare program on which so many seniors rely.”

Illinois-based Zebra Technologies also endorsed the bill’s goal to significantly reduce fraud and waste in the Medicare program.

H.R. 6690 now moves to the U.S. Senate for consideration.