Bill Summary
The "Chronic Disease Management Act of 2019" is a bill that proposes changes to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in order to allow high-deductible health plans to cover chronic disease prevention services for their enrollees before they meet their deductible. This means that individuals with these types of plans would be able to receive preventative care for chronic diseases without having to pay a deductible first. The bill also mentions the importance of targeted interventions for chronic diseases in order to prevent the need for more expensive treatments and improve quality of life. The bill also states that the Secretary of the Treasury has the authority to expand the scope of preventive care, but has not yet done so. Therefore, this bill would give explicit permission for high-deductible health plans to cover chronic disease prevention and treatment, with certain limitations. The bill also highlights the potential benefits of this change, such as promoting Value-Based Insurance Design and improving outcomes for those with chronic diseases. The amendment would apply to coverage beginning after the date of enactment.
Possible Impacts
1. Individuals with chronic diseases may have an easier time accessing preventive care services, as high-deductible health plans will be able to provide these services before the deductible is met.
2. The Secretary of the Treasury may face pressure from advocates to expand the list of chronic diseases covered under the preventive care safe harbor, potentially leading to changes in the scope of covered services.
3. The implementation of the Chronic Disease Management Act of 2019 may lead to increased use of Value-Based Insurance Design, potentially improving the quality and reducing the cost of care for individuals with chronic diseases.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3709 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3709
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit high-deductible
health plans to provide chronic disease prevention services to plan
enrollees prior to satisfying their plan deductible.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 11, 2019
Mr. Blumenauer (for himself and Mr. Reed) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit high-deductible
health plans to provide chronic disease prevention services to plan
enrollees prior to satisfying their plan deductible.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Chronic Disease
Management Act of 2019''.
(b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) A small number of chronic diseases account for the
majority of health care spending in the United States.
(2) Limited and targeted interventions for many chronic
diseases prevent the need for additional, more costly therapies
associated with untreated or unmanaged chronic diseases that
lead to adverse effects on quality of life for patients.
(3) These types of chronic care preventive services should
be encouraged to maximize the effectiveness and positive
outcomes of the care provided under high-deductible health
plans.
(4) Section 223(c)(2)(C) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 explicitly grants the Secretary of the Treasury
flexibility in defining the scope of preventive care for
purposes of the preventive care safe harbor. As of the date of
introduction of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury has
refrained from exercising existing authority under such section
to expand the preventive care safe harbor to include chronic
disease prevention.
(5) In the absence of an expansion of the preventive care
safe harbor by the Secretary of the Treasury, the Chronic
Disease Management Act of 2019 would expressly permit high-
deductible health plans to provide chronic disease prevention
and treatment, subject to certain limitations, prior to a plan
enrollee having met their plan deductible.
(6) Allowing health savings account-eligible high-
deductible health plans to cover chronic disease prevention and
treatment on a pre-deductible basis promotes the concept of
Value-Based Insurance Design, which is an effective tool to
improve the quality and reduce the cost of care for Americans
with chronic diseases, with improved outcomes via increased
medication adherence, reduced complications, and decreased
emergency department visits.
SEC. 2. CHRONIC DISEASE PREVENTION.
(a) In General.--Section 223(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 is amended by redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (E)
and by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following new subparagraph:
``(D) Safe harbor for absence of deductible for
care related to chronic conditions.--A plan shall not
fail to be treated as a high-deductible health plan by
reason of failing to have a deductible for care related
to the treatment of any chronic condition, as
determined by the Assistant Secretary for Health of the
Department of Health and Human Services.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply to coverage for months beginning after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
<all>