Maddy summaryHR 5840, the Transportation Security Screening Modernization Act of 2024, simplifies the process for transportation workers to obtain multiple TSA security credentials. It requires the TSA to allow individuals to apply for and renew programs like the TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential) and HAZMAT Endorsement through a single enrollment at any TSA center, with a combined fee lower than separate applications. The bill mandates coordinated expiration dates for all credentials and ensures state-issued commercial driver's licenses reflect the correct HAZMAT endorsement validity. These changes aim to reduce duplication and costs for workers needing multiple security clearances. The TSA must implement these changes within two years and publish details online.
Sponsored bills
Maddy summaryThe DRA of 2023 adjusts Medicare payment rates for specific durable medical equipment (DME) items that were part of the 2021 competitive bidding program but for which no supplier contracts were finalized. It directly affects DME suppliers and Medicare beneficiaries by establishing a new 2024 payment formula: 90% of the adjusted payment amount plus 10% of the unadjusted fee schedule for eligible items. The bill also extends a temporary transition rule for non-rural areas through December 31, 2024, while delaying a regulatory change until 2025. These provisions aim to stabilize payments for DME items that did not transition to standard pricing under prior rules.
Maddy summaryHR 5107, the Pandemic Unemployment Fraud Recoupment Act, extends the statute of limitations for enforcing fraud related to pandemic unemployment benefits from 3 years to 10 years across multiple programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, and Lost Wages Assistance. It requires states to recover overpayments from individuals who knowingly received benefits they weren’t entitled to, through deductions from future unemployment benefits, while maintaining existing due process protections like hearings before repayment. States may waive repayment if the overpayment wasn’t the individual’s fault or if repayment would be unfair. The bill applies directly to individuals who received pandemic-era unemployment benefits through fraudulent means, ensuring states have a longer timeframe to address these cases under established fraud procedures.
Maddy summaryThe Leveling the Playing Field 2.0 Act (HR 3882) updates U.S. trade law to better address international trade practices that disadvantage American businesses. It establishes special rules for handling multiple investigations of the same merchandise (called "successive investigations"), requiring the Commerce Department to consider previous injury determinations when making new findings. The bill also creates mechanisms to address market distortions from foreign government subsidies, including currency undervaluation, and strengthens procedures to prevent duty evasion through certification requirements for importers. These changes primarily affect foreign exporters of goods subject to U.S. antidumping and countervailing duty investigations, as well as U.S. importers of those goods.
Maddy summaryHR 3387, the No Surprise Bills for New Moms Act, requires health insurance plans and employers to automatically cover newborns for 30 days after birth for any services the plan normally covers, without requiring prior enrollment. This directly affects new parents (including fathers) and their newborns, preventing unexpected bills during the initial post-birth period. The bill also mandates a 60-day special enrollment period to formally add the baby to the plan and requires insurers to notify parents immediately if a claim is filed for an unenrolled newborn. These provisions apply to both employer-sponsored and private health insurance plans.
Maddy summaryHR 2769, the "Stop Penalizing Working Seniors Act," allows seniors over 65 who are enrolled only in Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) to contribute to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). It removes a current tax rule that barred these seniors from HSA contributions while they remain working. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude this group from the existing restriction, effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2022. This change directly affects working seniors with limited Medicare coverage who previously could not use HSAs for medical expenses.
Maddy summaryThis bill would require Medicare to cover FDA-approved blood tests that screen for multiple cancers simultaneously (like breast, lung, or colorectal cancer) for beneficiaries. It directly affects Medicare recipients aged 65+ who could access these new screenings once per year, without prior authorization. The key provision adds "multi-cancer early detection screening tests" to Medicare's covered services under Part B, defining them as blood tests analyzing cell-free DNA, while maintaining existing coverage for standard screenings like mammograms. The bill does not change current coverage for individual cancer screenings but ensures Medicare keeps pace with new medical technology.
Maddy summaryThis bill expands Medicare Part B coverage to include specific pharmacist services, directly affecting Medicare beneficiaries and pharmacists who provide these services. It adds new coverage for pharmacist evaluations and treatments related to certain illnesses (like COVID-19, flu, or strep throat) and public health emergencies, requiring payment at 80% of the lesser of actual charge or 85% of physician payment rates (100% during emergencies). The bill also prohibits balance billing for these services, ensuring beneficiaries pay only the standard Medicare copayment. These changes aim to improve access to pharmacist care during health crises while aligning payment with existing physician service frameworks.
Maddy summaryHR 1110, the KEEP Telehealth Options Act of 2023, requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to study pandemic-era telehealth expansions in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP programs through December 2024. The bill mandates HHS to report on telehealth service availability, provider reimbursement rules, usage patterns (including by rural, minority, low-income, and elderly populations), and mental health service use. It also directs MedPAC and MACPAC to study access barriers and potential fraud risks in telehealth services during this period. The reports, due within 1-18 months, will inform future policy decisions about telehealth coverage. This legislation focuses on gathering data to evaluate existing telehealth policies, not on changing them.
Maddy summaryHR 549, the Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act, removes waiting periods for disability and Medicare coverage for people diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. Specifically, it amends Social Security Act sections to allow immediate eligibility for disability insurance benefits (eliminating the standard waiting period) and immediate Medicare coverage (waiving the 24-month waiting period) for these patients. The bill directly affects individuals with metastatic breast cancer who would otherwise face delays in accessing critical benefits. These changes apply to applications filed or benefits beginning after the bill's enactment date. The law makes no other policy changes beyond these specific eligibility adjustments.