House Introduces NEATSA Act Companion Bill (H.R. 3021)

House Introduces NEATSA Act Companion Bill (H.R. 3021)

The American Ambulance Association (AAA) is pleased to announce that, Congressman Darin LaHood (R-IL) and Congresswoman Terri Sewell (D-AL) have introduced H.R. 3021 the “Non-Emergency Ambulance Transportation Sustainability and Accountability Act of 2019” or “NEATSA Act.”

Last year, Congress included in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 an offset to cover the cost of the 5 year extension of the add-ons. The offset cuts reimbursement for BLS non-emergency transports to and from dialysis centers by an additional 13%. This is on top of the preexisting 10% reduction. This legislation would restructure the offset so that a majority of the additional reduction would be focused on those ambulance service agencies in which 50% or more of their volume are repetitive BLS non-emergency transports to and from dialysis centers.

H.R. 3021 is the reintroduction of H.R.6269 from last Congress. This legislation serves as a companion bill to the Senate version, S. 228 by Senator Cassidy (R-LA) and Senator Jones (D-AL) which was introduced in January 2019. The additional cut went into effect on October 1, 2018 and has since negatively impacted AAA members. As such, the AAA is grateful for the support of Congressman LaHood and Congresswoman Sewell in working with us to get this important legislation introduced.

The AAA has worked diligently to ensure the timely introduction of this legislation that will ultimately help protect vital ambulance services for end stage renal disease patients. The AAA is working to help pass this bill through the legislative process and we will keep members updated as this legislation moves through Congress.