Preserving Patient Access to Home Infusion Act
Rep. Buchanan Leads Bipartisan Push to Expand Medicare Coverage for Home IV Treatments
Stalled
No legislative action in over 90 days.
Legislative Progress
Key Points
- This bill updates Medicare to cover the full cost of receiving IV medications at home, including the work pharmacists do to prepare the medicine and coordinate with doctors.
- It ensures that healthcare companies get paid for monitoring a patient's treatment every day the medicine is used, even if a nurse does not need to physically visit the home that day.
- To make care faster and easier to get, the bill allows Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants to set up and manage these home treatment plans instead of requiring only a doctor to do it.
- The policy expands the types of medications covered at home to include certain IV antibiotics and treatments for infections that do not require a special electric pump.
- These changes are scheduled to begin on January 1, 2026, and aim to help seniors and people with disabilities avoid long hospital stays by getting their necessary medicine in their own houses.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
Life & Work
Small home infusion therapy companies would see expanded Medicare reimbursement for their services, including pharmacy work like drug preparation and care coordination. The bill also creates a new 50% payment for days when a supplier isn't physically in the patient's home, giving smaller providers a more reliable revenue stream and making it more financially viable to serve Medicare patients in rural or underserved areas.
Programs
Disabilities
Milestones
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
3 articlesHome infusion bill re-introduced
Bipartisan lawmakers re-introduced the Preserving Patient Access to Home Infusion Act (H.R. 2172) to modernize Medicare's home infusion benefit. The bill aims to remove the physical presence requirement for reimbursement and acknowledge the full scope of professional pharmacist services.
NHIA pushes home infusion bills in DC
Members of the National Home Infusion Association met with over 130 congressional offices to advocate for H.R. 2172. The legislation would close Medicare coverage gaps by recognizing essential pharmacy professional services and expanding access to IV anti-infective treatments for seniors.
DME Home Infusion Law Passes
While Congress passed the Joe Fiandra Access to Home Infusion Act to expand access to pump-administered drugs, advocates emphasize that H.R. 2172 remains the 'next step' needed to establish a comprehensive benefit that covers pharmacy services and allows NPs and PAs to manage care plans.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Preserving Patient Access to Home Infusion Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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