Improving Access to Transfusion Care for Hospice Patients Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9703 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9703

  To require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to test
  allowing blood transfusions to be paid separately from the Medicare
                hospice all-inclusive per diem payment.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 15, 2026

 Mrs. Dingell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

  To require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to test
  allowing blood transfusions to be paid separately from the Medicare
                hospice all-inclusive per diem payment.

    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 ``Improving Access to Transfusion Care
for Hospice Patients Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. CENTER FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID INNOVATION TESTING OF ALLOWING
              BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS TO BE PAID SEPARATELY FROM THE
              MEDICARE HOSPICE ALL-INCLUSIVE PER DIEM PAYMENT.

    Section 1115A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1315a) is
amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(2)(A), by adding at the end the
        following new sentence: ``The models selected under this
        subparagraph shall include the testing of the model described
        in subsection (h).''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(h) Testing of Allowing Blood Transfusions To Be Paid Separately
From the Medicare Hospice All-Inclusive Per Diem Payment.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
        enactment of this subsection, the CMI shall establish and
        implement a model under which blood transfusions furnished to
        an individual receiving hospice care are paid separately from
        the hospice all-inclusive per diem payment under section
        1814(i). The separate payment amount for such blood transfusion
        shall be the amount that would otherwise apply under title
        XVIII if the transfusion was not furnished as part of hospice
        care.
            ``(2) Requirements for evaluation.--In conducting any
        evaluation of the model described in paragraph (1) pursuant to
        subsection (b)(4), the CMI shall ensure it compares
        participants under the model with similar patients outside of
        the model with respect to the following metrics:
                    ``(A) The number of chemotherapy services furnished
                in the last 14 days of life.
                    ``(B) Hospital utilization in the last 30 days of
                life, including emergency department visits, in-patient
                and observation status stays (including the length of
                the stays), and intensive care unit (ICU) days.
                    ``(C) How many days receiving hospice care before
                the end of life.
                    ``(D) The number of patients receiving hospice care
                who received a transfusion compared to patients with
                similar diagnoses not receiving hospice care.
                    ``(E) The average frequency of transfusion for
                patients receiving hospice care compared to patients
                not receiving hospice care.
                    ``(F) The number of transfusions for patients
                receiving hospice care compared to patients not
                receiving hospice care.
                    ``(G) Other areas determined appropriate by the
                CMI.''.
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