Fairness for Rural Medicare Beneficiaries Act of 2021
This bill modifies the payment methodology and coinsurance amount for outpatient critical access hospital services under Medicare.
Currently, the payment rate for such services is 101% of reasonable costs; the coinsurance amount for such services is 20% of the applicable charges. The bill modifies this methodology so as to base the 20% coinsurance amount on the fee schedule under the Medicare outpatient prospective payment system.
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to adjust coinsurance 
requirements for outpatient critical access hospital services furnished 
                      under the Medicare program.

    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 ``Fairness for Rural Medicare 
Beneficiaries Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. ADJUSTING COINSURANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR OUTPATIENT CRITICAL 
              ACCESS HOSPITAL SERVICES FURNISHED UNDER THE MEDICARE 
              PROGRAM.

    Section 1834(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(g)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``less 20 percent of the 
        amount specified under paragraph (6),'' after ``such 
        services,'';
            (2) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ``, less 20 percent 
        of the amount specified under paragraph (6)'' before the 
        period; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(6) Specified amount.--For purposes of paragraphs (1) and 
        (2)(A), the amount specified in this paragraph is, with respect 
        to services furnished by a critical access hospital, the amount 
        that would have been payable for such services under section 
        1833(t) had such services been covered OPD services.''.
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Fairness for Rural Medicare Beneficiaries Act of 2021
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to adjust coinsurance requirements for outpatient critical access hospital services furnished under the Medicare program.
Fairness for Rural Medicare Beneficiaries Act of 2021
Rep. Cole, Tom