HR-3253 : Became Public Law

Empowering Beneficiaries, Ensuring Access, and Strengthening Accountability Act of 2019

This bill alters several Medicaid programs and funding mechanisms. Specifically, the bill

• makes appropriations through FY2024 for, and otherwise revises, the Money Follows the Person Rebalancing Demonstration Program;
• allows state Medicaid fraud control units to review complaints regarding patients who are in noninstitutional or other settings;
• temporarily extends the applicability of Medicaid eligibility criteria that protect against spousal impoverishment for recipients of home and community-based services;
• temporarily extends the Medicaid demonstration program for certified community behavioral health clinics;
• repeals the requirement, under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, that drug manufacturers include the prices of certain authorized generic drugs when determining the average manufacturer price (AMP) of brand-name drugs (also known as a "blended AMP"), and excludes manufacturers from the definition of "wholesalers" for purposes of rebate calculations; and
• increases funding available to the Medicaid Improvement Fund beginning in FY2021.