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Improving Access to Transfusion Care for Hospice Patients Act of 2026
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.
Summary
- Requires the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to establish a model allowing blood transfusions for hospice patients to be paid separately from the hospice all-inclusive per diem payment.
- Specifies that the separate payment amount for transfusions should equal the amount that would be paid under Medicare if the transfusion was not part of hospice care.
- Requires implementation of the model within one year of enactment.
- Requires evaluation comparing hospice patients receiving transfusions under the model with similar patients not in the model, using metrics including hospital utilization, chemotherapy services, length of hospice care, and transfusion frequency.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
Actions (2)
- Jul 15, 2026 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. · house
- Jul 15, 2026 Introduced in House
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
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.”. <all>
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