Bill Summary
This bill, titled the "Medically Tailored Home-Delivered Meals Demonstration Pilot Act of 2020", aims to amend existing legislation (the Social Security Act) to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a demonstration program. This program will assess the effects of hospitals providing medically tailored home-delivered meals to qualified individuals. The bill specifies that the program will run for 3 years and will involve the selection of at least 20 eligible hospitals in 10 different states. The program will also require participating hospitals to maintain staff members who will screen patients for eligibility, provide medical nutrition therapy, and monitor health outcomes. The bill also outlines the payment process for these services and requires a report to be submitted to Congress evaluating the program and making recommendations for future coverage. Overall, this bill aims to determine the impact of providing medically tailored meals to hospitalized individuals with diet-impacted diseases, with the goal of improving health outcomes and reducing costs.
Possible Impacts
1. The legislation could affect individuals who are entitled to benefits under this part by requiring them to undergo screening for diet-impacted diseases. This may cause inconvenience and additional medical expenses for these individuals.
2. The legislation could also affect hospitals selected to participate in the Program, as they would be required to have specific staff on hand to screen and monitor qualified individuals and provide medical nutrition therapy. This could potentially add extra costs and administrative burdens for these hospitals.
3. The legislation could also affect the federal budget, as payments for the Program would be made from the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. This could potentially lead to a decrease in funds available for other healthcare programs or services.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6774 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6774
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require the
Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a demonstration
program to assess the effects of a hospital providing to qualified
individuals medically tailored home-delivered meals, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 8, 2020
Mr. McGovern (for himself, Ms. Pingree, Mrs. Walorski, and Mr.
Marshall) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Rules,
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
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require the
Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a demonstration
program to assess the effects of a hospital providing to qualified
individuals medically tailored home-delivered meals, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Medically Tailored Home-Delivered
Meals Demonstration Pilot Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. MEDICALLY TAILORED HOME-DELIVERED MEALS DEMONSTRATION PILOT
PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Part A of title XVIII of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following
new section:
``SEC. 1822. MEDICALLY TAILORED HOME-DELIVERED MEALS DEMONSTRATION
PILOT PROGRAM.
``(a) Establishment.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct under
this section the Medically Tailored Home-Delivered Meals
Demonstration Pilot Program (in this section referred to as the
`Program') for a 3-year period to assess the effects of a
covered hospital providing to qualified individuals medically
tailored home-delivered meals. Under the Program, the Secretary
shall--
``(A) select eligible hospitals to participate in
the Program in accordance with paragraph (2);
``(B) establish procedures for covered hospitals to
carry out the requirements of the Program described
under paragraph (3);
``(C) make payments to covered hospitals for items
and services provided to qualified individuals in
accordance with subsection (b); and
``(D) submit a report on the Program in accordance
with subsection (c).
``(2) Selection.--
``(A) In general.--For purposes of this subsection,
a covered hospital is a hospital--
``(i) that submits to the Secretary an
application at such time, in such manner, and
containing such information as the Secretary
may require;
``(ii) is selected by the Secretary to
carry out the Program for not more than a 3-
year period; and
``(iii) is a subsection (d) hospital under
section 1886.
``(B) Requirement.--The Secretary shall select at
least 20 covered hospitals located in at least 10
different States to carry out the Program.
``(3) Program requirements.--
``(A) Staff.--A covered hospital shall maintain on
staff a physician, registered dietitian or nutrition
professional, or clinical social worker to--
``(i) screen an individual that is an
inpatient of such hospital with validated
screening tools to determine whether such
individual is a qualified individual;
``(ii) re-screen each individual receiving
medically tailored home-delivered meals with
validated screening tools every 12 weeks to
determine whether such individual is qualified
to continue receiving medically tailored home-
delivered meals;
``(iii) in the case such an individual is
determined to be a qualified individual under
clause (i) or (ii), ensure such individual
receives medically tailored home-delivered
meals pursuant to a contract described in
subparagraph (B);
``(iv) provide to such individual
determined to be a qualified individual under
clause (i) or (ii) medical nutrition therapy
furnished by a registered dietitian or
nutritional professional or ensure that the
organization described in subparagraph (B) that
delivers meals to such individual provides to
such individual such therapy (as appropriate);
and
``(v) monitor the clinical health outcomes
(based on measures developed by the Secretary
consistent with State law) of each individual
that receive medically tailored home-delivered
meals.
``(B) Contract to deliver meals.--
``(i) In general.--A covered hospital shall
enter into a contract (in accordance with
criteria established by the Secretary) with at
least 1 organization that has at least 1 year
of experience preparing and delivering
medically tailored meals similar to meals
described in subsection (e)(2) and providing
individual nutritional counseling or medical
nutrition therapy in connection with delivering
meals.
``(ii) Number of meals.--The contract
described in clause (i) shall provide for--
``(I) at least 2 medically tailored
home-delivered meals (or a portioned
equivalent) each day that meet at least
two-thirds of the daily nutritional
needs of the qualified individual; and
``(II) at least 12 weeks of
medically tailored home-delivered
meals.
``(iii) Option to provide meals for
caregivers or dependents under the age of 18.--
In the case an individual is determined to be a
qualified individual under clause (i) or (ii)
of subparagraph (A), the covered hospital may
contract with the organization described in
clause (i) to provide to the primary caregiver
of the individual or a dependent under the age
of 18 that resides in the household of such
individual a meal the organization determines
appropriate.
``(C) Report by hospital.--Not later than 1 year
after the date the covered hospital begins to
participate in the Program, and annually thereafter, a
hospital selected under paragraph (2) shall submit to
the Secretary a report on--
``(i) the impact of medically tailored
home-delivered meals on clinical health
outcomes described in subparagraph (A)(v);
``(ii) the impact of medically tailored
home-delivered meals on hospital costs
(including the costs associated with the
readmission (as defined in 1886(q)(5)(E)) of
individuals); and
``(iii) any other information necessary to
evaluate the Program.
``(b) Payment.--Under the Program, payment for an item or service
provided under this section shall be made from the Federal Hospital
Insurance Trust Fund for the type, amount, frequency, and duration of
such an item or service as the Secretary determines appropriate as if
the item or service was payable under section 1886. Payment for a
contract described in subsection (a)(3)(B) shall be made from the
Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund for the amount the Secretary
determines appropriate.
``(c) Report by Secretary.--Not later than 3 years after the date
of the enactment of this Act, and 6 years after such date, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the Senate a report
on the Program. Such report shall include a summary of, evaluation of,
and recommendations on whether to cover medically tailored home-
delivered meals as a benefit under this part.
``(d) Hearings.--
``(1) In general.--The Committee on Ways and Means of the
House of Representatives shall, not later than 90 days after
the date the Secretary submits a report under subsection (c),
hold a hearing on the recommendations submitted by the
Secretary under subsection (c).
``(2) Exercise of rulemaking authority.--Paragraph (1) is
enacted--
``(A) as an exercise of rulemaking power of the
House of Representatives, and, as such, shall be
considered as part of the rules of the House, and such
rules shall supersede any other rule of the House only
to the extent that rule is inconsistent therewith; and
``(B) with full recognition of the constitutional
right of either House to change such rules (so far as
relating to the procedure in such House) at any time,
in the same manner, and to the same extent as in the
case of any other rule of the House.
``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Medical nutrition therapy.--The term `medical
nutrition therapy' means, for the purpose of disease
management, nutritional, diagnostics, and counseling, services
that are furnished by a registered dietitian or nutrition
professional.
``(2) Medically tailored home-delivered meal.--The term
`medically tailored home-delivered meal' means a meal that is
designed by a registered dietitian or nutritional
professional--
``(A) for the treatment plan of a qualified
individual; and
``(B) to improve health outcomes, lower the cost of
care, and increase the patient satisfaction of such
qualified individual.
``(3) Qualified individual.--The term `qualified
individual' means an individual who--
``(A) is entitled to benefits under this part;
``(B) has a diet-impacted disease (such as kidney
disease, congestive heart failure, diabetes, chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease, or any other disease the
Secretary determines appropriate) that is likely to
cause the individual to require care at a hospital; and
``(C) has at least one activity of daily living
limitation.
``(4) Registered dietitian or nutrition professional.--The
term `dietitian or nutrition professional' has the meaning
given such term in section 1861(vv)(2).
``(5) Validated screening tool.--The term `validated
screening tool' means a questionnaire that has been
psychometrically tested for reliability and validity in
assessing the presence of a condition in the individual who is
screened by such questionnaire.''.
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