Senate passes Hatch bill to improve care for Medicare beneficiaries with chronic conditions

With care for chronically ill patients accounting for a large portion of overall Medicare spending, the Senate approved legislation on Friday from U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) to enhance the delivery of care for beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions.

The Creating High-Quality Results and Outcomes Necessary to Improve Chronic (CHRONIC) Care Act of 2017, S. 870, which cleared the Senate with bipartisan support, contained key provisions authored by U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Rob Portman (R-OH).

The measure would expand the Independence at Home (IAH) program, which enables Medicare beneficiaries to receive specialized treatment at home. The bill would also make Medicare Advantage more flexible and predictable by allowing value-based insurance design in every state, permanently extending special needs plans and expanding supplemental benefits.

Hatch, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said S. 870 was the culmination of more than two years of work in the committee to improve health care outcomes for beneficiaries with chronic conditions.

“This legislation will improve disease management, lower Medicare costs and streamline care coordination services — all without adding to the deficit,” Hatch said. “Addressing these issues is critical for the increasing number of individuals who live with multiple chronic conditions and will age into the Medicare program over the next two decades.”

The CHRONIC Care Act is one of the few bipartisan health care bills to pass the Senate this Congress, Hatch said, urging the House to act quickly on the legislation.

Wicker led a provision included in the bill that expands the use of telehealth. It would remove telehealth coverage restrictions based on geographic location for dialysis treatment, certain Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) and treatment of stroke patients. It would also allow Medicare Advantage to include telehealth in annual base bids.

“Telemedicine is a cost-effective way to increase access to life-saving medical services in rural areas,” Wicker said. “Mississippi’s health leaders know the difference that removing barriers to telehealth services can make and I am pleased to see that my colleagues in the Senate now agree.”

Wicker said his strong support for the benefits of telehealth technologies stems from the success of the University of Mississippi Medical Center’s national leadership in the telehealth field.

Portman championed provisions of the bill to expand IAH program expiration for two years and to establish an ACO Beneficiary Incentive Program that enables those organizations to make incentive payments for preventative care or chronic disease management services.

“The CHRONIC Care Act will help strengthen our health care system by empowering patients with tools they need to better manage their health care and increasing the coordination of care to help patients and providers better manage chronic conditions,” Portman said.

Portman said his priorities in the bill included “… ensuring that Medicare beneficiaries can receive high-quality, personalized care at home, incentivizing beneficiaries to receive preventive services and better manage their health care, and ensuring the Medicare Advantage program includes accurate quality measures to incentive plans to continue to care for low-income seniors.”