Medicare Set Aside News - Medicare IVIG Access Act; Previously the SMART Act
Medicare IVIG Access Act (Previously the SMART Act) passes both Houses of Congress and is signed by President Obama on January 10, 2013
In long-awaited Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) legislation, both the Senate and the House have passed the Medicare IVIG Access Act (previously the Strengthening Medicare and Repaying Taxpayers (SMART) Act) amending the statute and reforming the process for Medicare beneficiaries. The Senate passed H.R. 1845, the Medicare IVIG Access Act, on December 21, 2012, two days after the bill passed in the House of Representatives. The legislation incorporates the parts of H.R. 1063, the Strengthening Medicare and Repaying Taxpayers (SMART) Act previously passed by the House. The legislation was presented to the President on December 31, 2012 and was signed today by President Obama. The new law resolves many areas of Medicare Set Aside administration including providing Medicare beneficiaries and insurers with a definitive conditional payment amount within a set time frame before settlement; establishing a process for Medicare beneficiaries to dispute the conditional payment amount; clarifying that the $1,000 per day per claimant penalties are discretionary rather than mandatory; and recognizing a three-year statute of limitations for recovery and penalty actions.