Congressman Dennis Cardoza
18th Congressional District of California

The bill, H.R. 3549, would increase some Medicare reimbursement rates and change current funding formulas in order to keep rural hospitals from closing. The legislation would also help home health agencies, nursing homes and other facilities, which are facing severe workforce shortages in some communities.

"One of the many great successes of Medicare is that it is available to every single senior in America," Cardoza said. "This success is severely threatened by low reimbursement rates and payments to hospitals that make it simply too expensive for them to operate in some areas. We must keep health care accessible and affordable in the Central Valley."

The language of the bill, which is identical to the rural provisions in the prescription drug bill currently before Congress, allows for a fix to go into effect immediately while leaving the more rancorous debate of a prescription drug benefit for later.

"There is significant disagreement over the prescription drug bill and how to structure a drug benefit under Medicare," Cardoza said. "But there is nearly unanimous agreement that our nation’s rural health care providers need help immediately. We need to shore up those providers and maintain the integrity of Medicare for rural communities across the country."