Sen. Jon Tester

Maddy summaryThis bill reauthorizes funding for the National Firefighter Cancer Registry, which tracks cancer cases among firefighters. It increases annual funding from $2.5 million (2018-2022) to $5.5 million for fiscal years 2024-2028. The registry remains voluntary, collecting data on firefighters diagnosed with cancer to better understand occupational risks. This funding ensures the program continues operating to gather and analyze cancer incidence data. The direct effect is on the registry program itself, enabling ongoing data collection for firefighter health research.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends the Agricultural Act of 2014 to expand disaster assistance for livestock producers. It adds unweaned cattle to the definition of livestock, includes leaseholders as eligible producers, and adjusts payment calculations for the Livestock Forage Disaster Program based on national corn prices and county grazing seasons (e.g., 8+ months of grazing triggers 8 monthly payments). The Emergency Assistance program now explicitly covers drought and includes transportation costs for feed/water, while clarifying coverage for winter grazing losses. These changes directly affect ranchers and farmers facing weather-related disasters by expanding eligibility and tailoring payments to regional conditions.

Maddy summaryThe Equality Act (S 5) amends federal civil rights laws to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in public accommodations, employment, housing, credit, and jury service. It expands existing protections under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by clarifying that discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity constitutes sex discrimination, as established by the Supreme Court's Bostock decision. The bill directly affects businesses, employers, housing providers, financial institutions, and government services that receive federal funding, requiring them to provide equal access and treatment regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. It includes specific provisions addressing discrimination in foster care and adoption, where LGBTQ individuals often face barriers, and clarifies definitions of terms like "gender identity" and "sexual orientation" for consistent application. The law creates a uniform national standard for nondiscrimination where many states lack such protections, aiming to eliminate barriers to full participation in society for LGBTQ individuals.

Maddy summaryThis bill adds multi-cancer early detection screening tests to Medicare Part B coverage, directly affecting Medicare beneficiaries. It creates a new coverage category for FDA-approved blood tests (like those analyzing cell-free DNA) that screen for multiple cancer types simultaneously, as defined in the bill. Medicare would cover these tests once every 12 months, and the bill clarifies that this change does not impact existing coverage for standard cancer screenings like mammograms or colonoscopies. The policy change ensures beneficiaries can access these new screening options without unnecessary delays after FDA approval.

Protect Patient Access to Pharmacies Act This bill establishes certain requirements with respect to payments to pharmacies by prescription drug plan (PDP) sponsors under the Medicare prescription drug benefit and Medicare Advantage. Specifically, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) must ensure that payments sufficiently cover a pharmacy's costs to acquire and dispense covered drugs so as to enable the pharmacy to participate as a network provider. The CMS must (1) use relevant data from pharmacies with respect to acquisition and dispensing costs for covered drugs, (2) establish payment parameters, and (3) establish an appeal process for pharmacies about payments. The CMS must also evaluate the performance measures used by PDP sponsors for pharmacy price concessions or other performance fees and develop standardized performance measures.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires group health plans (like employer-sponsored insurance) to provide equal cost-sharing (such as copays and deductibles) for oral anticancer medications as for intravenous or injected versions, provided a doctor deems the oral drug medically necessary. It prohibits plans from changing coverage to increase out-of-pocket costs for oral drugs or impose stricter limits on them compared to IV drugs. The requirement applies to FDA-approved anticancer drugs used to treat cancer, with plans still allowed to use prior authorization. The law takes effect for 2024 plan years.

Maddy summaryThe CONNECT for Health Act of 2023 expands Medicare telehealth coverage by removing geographic restrictions, allowing services to be provided from home and other locations, and expanding who can offer telehealth services. The bill repeals the six-month in-person visit requirement for telemental health and allows telehealth use in hospice care recertification. It also includes program integrity measures to address inappropriate billing patterns and requires posting of telehealth service data to improve transparency. This legislation directly affects Medicare beneficiaries, healthcare providers, and telehealth technology vendors by making telehealth more accessible, particularly for rural and underserved populations, those with mobility challenges, and individuals in areas with healthcare workforce shortages.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates housing benefits for volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders. It allows qualified volunteers to deduct $18,000 annually from their income when applying for USDA single-family home loans, and qualifies them for HUD’s discounted home programs reserved for first responders. To qualify, volunteers must be certified in their state or tribe, have served at least 200 hours per year for two consecutive years, and provide verification from their volunteer organization. The bill directly affects local volunteer first responders seeking affordable homeownership through federal housing programs.

Patients Before Middlemen Act or the PBM Act  This bill prohibits pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) under the Medicare prescription drug benefit or Medicare Advantage from receiving any income for their services other than bona fide service fees. Specifically, PBMs may not receive any income other than flat, bona fide service fees that are specified in their contracts with prescription drug plan (PDP) sponsors. Such fees may not be based on drug prices, discounts, rebates, or any other remuneration. PBMs must turn over any excess amounts they receive to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. PDP sponsors and PBMs must annually certify their compliance with these requirements.

Maddy summaryThe Veterans' COLA Act of 2023 increases compensation rates for veterans with service-connected disabilities and for survivors of certain disabled veterans, effective December 1, 2023. These increases will be calculated using the same percentage as the Social Security Act's cost-of-living adjustment for that year. The bill affects veterans receiving disability compensation under section 1114 of Title 38, as well as survivors receiving dependency and indemnity compensation under sections 1311, 1313, and 1314. Specific provisions include adjustments to wartime disability compensation, additional compensation for dependents, clothing allowances, and survivor benefits. The Department of Veterans Affairs will publish the adjusted rates in the Federal Register by the date required for Social Security Act adjustments.