To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for fairness in the calculation of medicare disproportionate share hospital payments for hospitals in Puerto Rico.

March 30, 2004

Mr. SANTORUM introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for fairness in the calculation of medicare disproportionate share hospital payments for hospitals in Puerto Rico.

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 `Medicare DSH Payments for Puerto Rico Hospitals Fairness Act of 2004'.

SEC. 2. CALCULATION OF MEDICARE DSH PAYMENTS FOR PPS HOSPITALS IN PUERTO RICO.

Section 1886(d)(9)(D)(iii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(9)(D)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:

`(iii) Subparagraph (F) (relating to disproportionate share payments), except that for this purpose--

`(I) the sum described in clause (ii) of this subparagraph shall be substituted for the sum referred to in paragraph (5)(F)(ii)(I); and

`(II) for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2004, subclause (I) of paragraph (5)(F)(vi) shall be applied by substituting for the numerator described in such subclause the number of a subsection (d) Puerto Rico hospital's patient days for a cost reporting period that are made up of patients who (for such days) were entitled to benefits under part A of this title and were recipients of aid under the State plan approved under title XVI that provides for grants to States for aid to the aged, blind, or disabled.'.

END