On the Third Hand: Medicare delays bill

Members of the House are getting ready to consider S. 1347, a Medicare standards delay bill, through the “suspension calendar” process later this week.

The bill would help insurers with Medicare Advantage plans with low ratings by giving them more time before Medicare chases them out of the program.

The bill would give doctors and hospitals that have trouble getting an electronic health record (EHR) system up and running more time before Medicare “adjusts their payments” downward.

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On the one hand, Congress may really have imposed impractical standards on Medicare plans and providers. Maybe members of Congress are wise to ride to the affected insurers’ and providers’ rescue.

On the other hand, Congress does seem to be giving off the impression that it has some combination of a hard time setting realistic standards for government program vendors and a difficulty with saying no to government program vendor lobbyists.

The House uses the suspension calendar process to rush noncontroversial bills through a vote without actually having to record a vote. The Senate passed S. 1347 through a similar fast-track process in August.