WASHINGTON - Today, Representatives Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS), Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Ron Kind (D-WI), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Raul Ruiz, M.D. (D-CA), Brad Wenstrup, D.P.M. (R-OH), and Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) led a bipartisan letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to issue final rules that would modernize the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute and Physician Self-Referral (Stark) Law. The letter outlines how necessary these reforms are to make it easier for health care providers to participate in value-based arrangements that deliver to patients high value and coordinated care.
"I commend the Trump Administration and HHS Secretary Azar in updating antiquated regulations that will expand adoption of value-based care across our health system, said Rep. Marshall. "The current regulatory landscape has barriers that don't allow us to maximize medical breakthroughs and have affordable, personalized care. The Stark and Anti-Kick reforms HHS proposed will pave the way forward. My colleagues and I are urging OMB and HHS to release these groundbreaking rules quickly."
"I'm pleased that Secretary Azar is working to move our health care system from one based on volume to one based on value," said Rep. Bera. "As a co-chair of the Health Care Innovation Caucus dedicated to that issue, I believe these proposed rules modernizing outdated laws will allow health care providers to increasingly partner to improve care for their patients and should be finalized. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that our health care system needs as much flexibility, innovation, and modernization as possible, and these rules will do just that while continuing to protect against waste, fraud, and abuse."
"I commend the Trump Administration's efforts to overhaul policies that limit the ability of providers to make decisions about coordinated care for their patients, said Rep. Kelly. "These proposed rules to reform Stark Law and Anti-Kickback statutes will help modernize our health care system in a way that speeds the transition to value-based care. I hope OMB and HHS moves quickly to finalize these rules as these changes will improve quality and reduce prices for patients."
"Updates to the Stark Law and the Anti-Kickback Statute are long overdue and have the potential to create access to better quality, comprehensive, and coordinated health care," said Rep. Kind. "I urge the Administration to finalize these rules and I look forward to continuing to work to move our health care system to one that rewards value over volume."
"Patients need affordable, high quality health care, said Rep. Mullin. "Now more than ever, we should be focused on ways our health systems can work together to improve outcomes. The proposed reforms will help ensure the federal government doesn't stand in the way as medical innovation brings health care into the 21st century. I urge OMB and HHS to finalize the proposed rules which will lead to more innovation in our health care industry."
"Shifting our healthcare delivery system to value care over volume will result in better outcomes for patients and doctors alike," said Rep. Wenstrup. I applaud the Trump administration's efforts to modernize the Stark and Anti-Kickback regulations, allowing doctors to better serve their patients and coordinate care. These proposed patient-focused rules move our overall healthcare system in the right direction, and I urge the administration to finalize them as quickly as possible."