HR-2 : Became Public Law

Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015

Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSAct) to: (1) remove sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology from the determination of annual conversion factors in the formula for payment for physicians' services, and (2) revise the update in rates for 2015 and subsequent years.

Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Merit-based Incentive Payment (MIP) system under which eligible professionals (including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and certified registered nurse anesthetists) shall receive annual payment increases or decreases based on their performance.

Requires specified incentive payments to eligible participants in an alternative payment model.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) draft a plan for development of quality measures to assess professionals, including non-patient-facing professionals; and (2) make payments for chronic care management services.

Expands the kinds of uses of Medicare data available to qualified entities. Directs the Secretary to provide Medicare data to qualified clinical data registries to facilitate quality improvement or patient safety.

Declares it a national objective to achieve widespread exchange of health information through interoperable certified electronic health records technology nationwide by December 31, 2018.

Extends through calendar 2017 specified elements of Medicare funding. Prescribes requirements for reasonable cost reimbursement contracts that may no longer be extended or renewed.

Amends SSAct title XIX (Medicaid) to extend permanently the qualifying individual program and the transitional medical assistance program.

Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend certain special diabetes programs.

Amends SSAct title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to extend: (1) abstinence education; (2) personal responsibility education program; (3) family-to-family health information centers; and (4) maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs.

Amends SSAct title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (CHIP) to extend the CHIP program through FY2017.

Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) deny Medigap policies to Medicare beneficiaries newly eligible on or after January 1, 2020; and (2) set 1% market basket percentage increases or annual updates for hospice, long-term care hospital, and other providers.

Revises or sets the aggregate reductions in Medicaid disproportionate share hospital allotments for FY2018-FY2025.

Prohibits the inclusion of Social Security numbers on Medicare cards.

Directs the Secretary to establish procedures to ensure that Medicare payments are not furnished to incarcerated individuals, individuals not lawfully present in the United States, and deceased individuals.

Requires the use of Medicare beneficiary smart cards, subject to certain conditions.

Requires valid prescriber national provider identifiers on pharmacy claims.

Requires medical review of spinal subluxation services by a chiropractor.

Eliminates the availability of certain funds for the Medicare Improvement Fund.

Amends the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 to extend through FY2015 the two-midnight rule regarding certain medical patient status review activities. (The two-midnight rule allows Medicare coverage of only hospital stays for which a physician admits to a hospital a beneficiary expected to require care that crosses two midnights, but generally denies coverage of care expected to require less than a two-midnight stay.)

Requires bid surety bonds and state licensure for entities submitting bids under a competitive durable medical equipment and prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies acquisition program.

Prohibits the Secretary from implementing the final rule requiring the transition of all 10-day and 90-day global surgical packages to 0-day global periods.

Extends through FY2015 the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000.