Economic Stimulus Package to Include Health Related Provisions
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
February 6, 2009
Congress intends to approve the economic stimulus package by President's Day Recess (February 15). There are a number of health care related provisions that could be included in this package.
Expansion of COBRA
Sixty-five percent COBRA premium subsidy for workers who have been involuntarily terminated between Sept. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2009.
Incentives for the Development, Implementation and Adoption of a Nationwide Health Information Technology (HIT) Infrastructure
Codifies the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONCHIT) within HHS.
Establishes HIT Policy and Standards Committees that are comprised of public and private stakeholders (e.g., physicians) to provide recommendations on implementation, standards, and certification criteria for electronic exchange and use of health information.
HHS would adopt through the rule-making process an initial set of standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria by Dec. 31, 2009.
ONCHIT would be authorized to make available an HIT system to providers for a nominal fee.
Provides financial incentives through the Medicare program to encourage physicians and hospitals to adopt and use certified electronic health records (EHR) in a meaningful way (as defined by the Secretary and may include reporting quality measures). Authorizes ONCHIT to provide competitive grants to states for loans to providers.
Federal privacy and security laws (HIPAA) would be expanded to:
Protect identifiable health information
Restrict certain disclosures and sales of protected health information
Require an accounting of disclosures
Increase civil monetary penalties for violations
Authorize state attorneys general to enforce HIPAA privacy and security laws
Increase Funding for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) by $1.1 billion
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) would receive $700 million for CER; AHRQ must transfer $400 million to NIH to conduct or support CER.
The Secretary would have the discretion to allocate $400 million for CER to accelerate the development and dissemination of research assessing the comparative effectiveness of health care treatments and strategies.
General Appropriations
Prevention and Wellness
Provides funding for wellness and prevention programs.
Community Health Centers
To increase the number of uninsured Americans who receive quality health care.
To renovate clinics and make health information technology improvements.
Training Primary Care Providers
To address shortages by training primary health care providers.
To assist with medical school expenses for students who agree to practice in underserved communities through the National Health Service Corps.
Indian Health Service Facilities
To modernize aging hospitals and clinics and make health care technology upgrades to improve care.
NIH Research and Facilities
Additional funding for new research grants and renovations at the NIH’s campuses.
Additional funding for universities conducting NIH-sponsored research for renovation of their laboratories.
