Ensuring Access to COVID-19 Preventive Care Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 6231 To ensure affordable coverage of certain vaccines and testing services under group health plans and group and individual health insurance coverage during the COVID-19 public health emergency. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 12, 2020 Mr. BUCSHON (for himself and Ms. SCHAKOWSKY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To ensure affordable coverage of certain vaccines and testing services under group health plans and group and indi- vidual health insurance coverage during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring Access to 4 COVID-19 Preventive Care Act of 2020’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:36 Mar 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6231.IH H6231 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 6231 IH SEC. 2. ENSURING AFFORDABLE COVERAGE OF CERTAIN 1 VACCINES AND TESTING SERVICES UNDER 2 GROUP HEALTH PLANS AND GROUP AND IN- 3 DIVIDUAL HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE 4 DURING THE COVID-19 PUBLIC HEALTH 5 EMERGENCY. 6 (a) EXPEDITED MEETING OF ACIP FOR COVID-19 7 VACCINES.— 8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 9 3091 of the 21st Century Cures Act (21 U.S.C. 10 360bbb–4 note), the Advisory Committee on Immu- 11 nization Practices shall meet and issue a rec- 12 ommendation with respect to a vaccine that is in- 13 tended to prevent or treat COVID-19 not later than 14 15 business days after the date on which such vac- 15 cine is licensed under section 351 of the Public 16 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262). 17 (2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 18 ‘‘Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’’ 19 means the Advisory Committee on Immunization 20 Practices established by the Secretary of Health and 21 Human Services pursuant to section 222 of the Pub- 22 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 217a), acting 23 through the Director of the Centers for Disease 24 Control and Prevention. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:36 Mar 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6231.IH H6231 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 6231 IH (b) AUTHORITY TO WAIVE COST SHARING FOR 1 TESTING SERVICES FOR COVID-19.—Section 2713 of the 2 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–13) is 3 amended— 4 (1) in the header, by inserting before the period 5 at the end the following: ‘‘; COVERAGE OF CER- 6 TAIN TESTING SERVICES FOR COVID-19’’; and 7 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub- 8 section: 9 ‘‘(d) COVERAGE OF CERTAIN TESTING SERVICES 10 FOR COVID-19.— 11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A group health plan, and a 12 health insurance issuer offering group or individual 13 health insurance coverage, shall, during a period de- 14 scribed in paragraph (2), at a minimum provide cov- 15 erage for and not impose any cost sharing require- 16 ments for an item or service specified by the Sec- 17 retary under paragraph (3) with respect to such pe- 18 riod. 19 ‘‘(2) PERIOD DESCRIBED.—For purposes of 20 this subsection and with respect to an item or serv- 21 ice specified under paragraph (3) and a group health 22 plan or group or individual health insurance cov- 23 erage, a period described in this paragraph is a pe- 24 riod specified by the Secretary that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:36 Mar 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6231.IH H6231 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 6231 IH ‘‘(A) begins during the public health emer- 1 gency declared by the Secretary pursuant to 2 section 319 on January 31, 2020, entitled ‘De- 3 termination that a Public Health Emergency 4 Exists Nationwide as the Result of the 2019 5 Novel Coronavirus’ (or any renewal of such dec- 6 laration pursuant to such section); and 7 ‘‘(B) ends on the earlier of— 8 ‘‘(i) the termination of such declara- 9 tion; and 10 ‘‘(ii) in the case the United States 11 Preventive Services Task Force issues a 12 rating (other than ‘I’) with respect to such 13 item or service— 14 ‘‘(I) in the case such rating is an 15 ‘A’ or ‘B’, the day before the date on 16 which the requirements of subsection 17 (a) apply to such plan or coverage 18 with respect to such item or service; 19 or 20 ‘‘(II) in the case such rating is 21 not described in subclause (I), the 22 date such rating is so issued. 23 ‘‘(3) SPECIFIED ITEMS AND SERVICES.—For 24 purposes of this subsection, the Secretary may speci- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:36 Mar 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6231.IH H6231 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 6231 IH fy an item or service under this paragraph with re- 1 spect to a period described in paragraph (2) only if 2 such item or service— 3 ‘‘(A) is a testing service intended to detect 4 SARS–CoV–2 or diagnose COVID-19; and 5 ‘‘(B) does not, as of the date such item or 6 service is so specified, have in effect a rating 7 from the United States Preventive Services 8 Task Force (or has in effect a rating of ‘I’).’’. 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:36 Mar 30, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H6231.IH H6231 jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with BILLS