US Congress Senate Bill 3499 (Prior Session Legislation)

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Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 40-3)
Status: Introduced on March 12 2020 - 25% progression, died in committee
Action: 2020-03-12 - Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Pending: Senate Health, Education, Labor, And Pensions Committee
Text: Latest bill text (Introduced) [PDF]

Requires specified public health care programs and private health insurance to cover testing for COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) without imposing cost-sharing (e.g., deductibles, coinsurance, or copayments) for the duration of the public health emergency declared on January 31, 2020. This coverage includes the cost of administering such approved tests and related visits to health care providers.Specifically, these requirements apply to COVID-19 testing and office visits for individuals covered through (1) Medicare, (2) Medicare Advantage, (3) Medicaid, (4) the Children's Health Insurance Program, (5) the Department of Defense (i.e., TRICARE), (6) the Department of Veterans Affairs, (7) the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, or (8) the Indian Health Service. Additionally, state Medicaid programs may cover COVID-19 testing and related visits for uninsured individuals during the emergency, and the Department of Health and Human Services must reimburse laboratories for the cost of such tests.

Free COVID–19 Testing Act

Sen. Tina Smith [D-MN]	Sen. Gary Peters [D-MI]	Sen. Charles Schumer [D-NY]	Sen. Patty Murray [D-WA]
Sen. Ron Wyden [D-OR]	Sen. Robert Casey [D-PA]	Sen. Doug Jones [D-AL]	Sen. Sherrod Brown [D-OH]
Sen. Tammy Duckworth [D-IL]	Sen. Jon Tester [D-MT]	Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse [D-RI]	Sen. Bernard Sanders [I-VT]
Sen. Tammy Baldwin [D-WI]	Sen. Jack Reed [D-RI]	Sen. Christopher Murphy [D-CT]	Sen. Amy Klobuchar [D-MN]
Sen. Mazie Hirono [D-HI]	Sen. Brian Schatz [D-HI]	Sen. Angus King [I-ME]	Sen. Christopher Coons [D-DE]
Sen. Debbie Stabenow [D-MI]	Sen. Cory Booker [D-NJ]	Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D-CA]	Sen. Kamala Harris [D-CA]
Sen. Tom Udall [D-NM]	Sen. Margaret Hassan [D-NH]	Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand [D-NY]	Sen. Martin Heinrich [D-NM]
Sen. Jacky Rosen [D-NV]	Sen. Jeanne Shaheen [D-NH]	Sen. Tim Kaine [D-VA]	Sen. Elizabeth Warren [D-MA]
Sen. Thomas Carper [D-DE]	Sen. Mark Warner [D-VA]	Sen. Chris Van Hollen [D-MD]	Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]
Sen. Edward Markey [D-MA]	Sen. Richard Blumenthal [D-CT]	Sen. Michael Bennet [D-CO]	Sen. Robert Menendez [D-NJ]
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto [D-NV]	Sen. Jeff Merkley [D-OR]	Sen. Kyrsten Sinema [I-AZ]

Date	Chamber	Action
2020-03-12	Senate	Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

HB6201 (Related) 2020-03-19 - Engrossment Correction
HB6213 (Related) 2020-03-11 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
HB6214 (Related) 2020-03-12 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
HB6232 (Related) 2020-03-12 - Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
HB6244 (Related) 2020-03-12 - Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
HB6261 (Related) 2020-04-01 - Referred to the Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States.
HB6263 (Related) 2020-03-19 - Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Type	Source
Summary	https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/3499/all-info
Text	https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/s3499/BILLS-116s3499is.pdf