Medicare at 50 Act
Latest action · Apr 21, 2021 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedApr 21, 2021
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Medicare at 50 Act
This bill establishes a Medicare buy-in option for certain qualifying individuals and also repeals restrictions relating to prescription drug prices under the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
Specifically, the bill allows individuals aged 50 to 64 to enroll in Medicare if such individuals would otherwise qualify for Medicare at the age of 65. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) must determine enrollment periods and set premiums for the buy-in option established under the bill, in accordance with specified requirements. The CMS must also award grants to states and nonprofit organizations for outreach and enrollment activities relating to the buy-in option.
The bill also repeals provisions that prohibit the CMS from negotiating the prices of prescription drugs or from establishing a formulary under the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
Cosponsors 19
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Apr 21, 2021 to May 10, 2021; 17 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MN | Amy Klobuchar | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-MD | Benjamin L. Cardin | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-MD | Chris Van Hollen | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-MI | Gary C. Peters | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-RI | Jack Reed | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-NH | Jeanne Shaheen | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-OR | Jeff Merkley | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-NY | Kirsten E. Gillibrand | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-CT | Richard Blumenthal | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-PA | Robert P. Casey Jr. | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-WI | Tammy Baldwin | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-IL | Tammy Duckworth | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-MN | Tina Smith | Original | Apr 21, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Cory A. Booker | Apr 22, 2021 | |
| D-VT | Patrick J. Leahy | May 10, 2021 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Finance Committee | Referred Apr 21, 2021 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 21, 2021Introduced in Senate
- Apr 21, 2021Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 4
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022421 pages | Appropriations Committee | Oct 13, 2022 |
| — | DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2021456 pages | Appropriations Committee | Sep 27, 2022 |
| S. Hrg. 117-799 | DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2023896 pages | Appropriations Committee | May 4, 2022–Jun 15, 2022 |
| S. Hrg. 117-497 | DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022873 pages | Appropriations Committee | May 19, 2021–Jul 14, 2021 |
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 470 | Medicare at 50 Act | Reintroduction of | Feb 13, 2019 |
| S 833 | Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act of 2021 | Related bill | Mar 18, 2021 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for an option for any citizen or permanent resident of the United States age 50 to 64 to buy into Medicare.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Medicare at 50 Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Health.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 21, 2021Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
