Members of Washington’s congressional delegation led by Rep. Suzan DelBene are urging the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to finalize proposed rules that would aim to streamline the prior authorization process.
Reps. DelBene, Kilmer, Schrier, Gluesenkamp-Perez and Strickland were part of a group of 294 lawmakers that sent a letter to CMS on June 21 with proposals that would include requiring Medicare Advantage (MA) plans to implement real-time electronic decision-making for routinely approved health care services, provide responses to emergency procedure requests within 24 hours instead of 72 hours and implement enhanced transparency standards.
The provisions in the proposed rule would bring CMS policy more in line with the bipartisan, bicameral Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, which passed the House during the 117th Congress. A copy of the letters can be found here.
We applaud this collaborative effort to improve health care for Washingtonians.
Sincerely,
Jacqueline Barton True
WSHA Vice President, Advocacy and Rural Health
jacquelineb@wsha.org
