A bipartisan group of senators on Thursday proposed legislation called the Chronic Care Act that would expand or create a range of Medicare programs to improve coordination and cost for treatment of various chronic conditions, according to The Hill.
The proposal is the culmination of several months of work by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and the panel's top Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden fromOregon, in addition to Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Johnny Isakson, R-Ga.
"Addressing chronic care in the Medicare program with reforms that improve outcomes for patients and save taxpayer dollars is a bipartisan goal, and I am proud that after a year and a half's worth of work, the Finance Committee Chronic Care Working Group was able to unite around a set of reforms and recommendations to advance the conversation," Sen. Hatch said in a statement.
The draft bill includes expanding a Medicare pilot program that sends physicians and nurses to patients' homes for care; increasing flexibility for physician groups that are part of ACOs; and increasing the use of telehealth, according to the report. The reform would also expand programs aimed at combating high drug prices.
The Congressional Budget Office has not yet provided a cost estimate on the proposal, but the draft calls for savings from the initiatives outlined to offset any spending.