§ 242m. General provisions respecting effectiveness, efficiency, and quality of health services

§ 242m. General provisions respecting effectiveness, efficiency, and quality of health services

(a) Reports to Congress and President; preparation; review by Office of Management and Budget

(1) Not later than March 15 of each year, the Secretary shall submit to the President and Congress the following reports:

(A) A report on health care costs and financing. Such report shall include a description and analysis of the statistics collected under section 242k(b)(1)(G) of this title.

(B) A report on health resources. Such report shall include a description and analysis, by geographical area, of the statistics collected under section 242k(b)(1)(E) of this title.

(C) A report on the utilization of health resources. Such report shall include a description and analysis, by age, sex, income, and geographic area, of the statistics collected under section 242k(b)(1)(F) of this title.

(D) A report on the health of the Nation’s people. Such report shall include a description and analysis, by age, sex, income, and geographic area, of the statistics collected under section 242k(b)(1)(A) of this title.

(2) The reports required in paragraph (1) shall be prepared through the National Center for Health Statistics.

(3) The Office of Management and Budget may review any report required by paragraph (1) of this subsection before its submission to Congress, but the Office may not revise any such report or delay its submission beyond the date prescribed for its submission, and may submit to Congress its comments respecting any such report.

(b) Grants or contracts; applications, submittal; application peer review group, findings and recommendations; necessity of favorable recommendation; appointments

(1) No grant or contract may be made under section 242b, 242k, or 242l of this title unless an application therefor has been submitted to the Secretary in such form and manner, and containing such information, as the Secretary may by regulation prescribe and unless a peer review group referred to in paragraph (2) has recommended the application for approval.

(2)

(A) Each application submitted for a grant or contract under section 242k of this title in an amount exceeding $50,000 of direct costs and for a health services research, evaluation, or demonstration project, or for a grant under section 242k(m) of this title, shall be submitted to a peer review group for an evaluation of the technical and scientific merits of the proposals made in each such application. The Director of the National Center for Health Statistics shall establish such peer review groups as may be necessary to provide for such an evaluation of each such application.

(B) A peer review group to which an application is submitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall report its finding and recommendations respecting the application to the Secretary, acting through the Director of the National Center for Health Statistics, in such form and manner as the Secretary shall by regulation prescribe. The Secretary may not approve an application described in such subparagraph unless a peer review group has recommended the application for approval.

(C) The Secretary, acting through the Director of the National Center for Health Statistics, shall make appointments to the peer review groups required in subparagraph (A) from among persons who are not officers or employees of the United States and who possess appropriate technical and scientific qualifications, except that peer review groups regarding grants under section 242k(m) of this title may include appropriately qualified such officers and employees.

(c) Development and dissemination of statistics The Secretary shall take such action as may be necessary to assure that statistics developed under sections 242b and 242k of this title are of high quality, timely, comprehensive as well as specific, standardized, and adequately analyzed and indexed, and shall publish, make available, and disseminate such statistics on as wide a basis as is practicable.

(d) Information; publication restrictions No information, if an establishment or person supplying the information or described in it is identifiable, obtained in the course of activities undertaken or supported under section 242b, 242k, or 242l of this title may be used for any purpose other than the purpose for which it was supplied unless such establishment or person has consented (as determined under regulations of the Secretary) to its use for such other purpose; and in the case of information obtained in the course of health statistical or epidemiological activities under section 242b or 242k of this title, such information may not be published or released in other form if the particular establishment or person supplying the information or described in it is identifiable unless such establishment or person has consented (as determined under regulations of the Secretary) to its publication or release in other form.

(e) Payment procedures; advances or reimbursement; installments; conditions; reductions

(1) Payments of any grant or under any contract under section 242b, 242k, or 242l of this title may be made in advance or by way of reimbursement, and in such installments and on such conditions, as the Secretary deems necessary to carry out the purposes of such section.

(2) The amounts otherwise payable to any person under a grant or contract made under section 242b, 242k, or 242l of this title shall be reduced by—

but only if such person requested the Secretary to furnish such equipment or supplies, or such services, as the case may be.

(A) amounts equal to the fair market value of any equipment or supplies furnished to such person by the Secretary for the purpose of carrying out the project with respect to which such grant or contract is made, and

(B) amounts equal to the pay, allowances, traveling expenses, and related personnel expenses attributable to the performance of services by an officer or employee of the Government in connection with such project, if such officer or employee was assigned or detailed by the Secretary to perform such services,

(f) Contracts without regard to section 3324 of title 31 and section 6101 of title 41 Contracts may be entered into under section 242b or 242k of this title without regard to section 3324 of title 31 and section 6101 of title 41.

(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, § 308, as added Pub. L. 93–353, title I, § 107(a), July 23, 1974, 88 Stat. 368; amended Pub. L. 94–273, § 7(2), Apr. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 378; Pub. L. 95–83, title I, § 104, Aug. 1, 1977, 91 Stat. 384; Pub. L. 95–623, §§ 2, 6(d), 8(b), Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3443, 3451, 3455; Pub. L. 97–35, title IX, §§ 917(a), (b), 919(a)(2)(B), 922, Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 564, 565, 567; Pub. L. 97–414, § 8(c), Jan. 4, 1983, 96 Stat. 2060; Pub. L. 98–551, § 7, Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 2820; Pub. L. 100–177, title I, §§ 106(a), 107, 108, Dec. 1, 1987, 101 Stat. 988–990; Pub. L. 100–690, title II, § 2612, Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4235; Pub. L. 101–239, title VI, § 6103(e)(4), Dec. 19, 1989, 103 Stat. 2206; Pub. L. 101–527, § 7(b)(2), (d), Nov. 6, 1990, 104 Stat. 2328; Pub. L. 103–183, title V, § 501(c), Dec. 14, 1993, 107 Stat. 2237; Pub. L. 105–392, title IV, § 401(d), Nov. 13, 1998, 112 Stat. 3587.)

Editorial Notes

Codification

In subsec. (f), “section 6101 of title 41” substituted for “section 3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5)” on authority of Pub. L. 111–350, § 6(c), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3854, which Act enacted Title 41, Public Contracts.

Prior Provisions

Provisions similar to those comprising subsec. (e) of this section were contained in subsec. (a)(3) of section 304 of act July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, as added July 28, 1955, ch. 417, § 3, 69 Stat. 382, and amended (formerly classified to section 242b(a)(3) of this title), prior to general amendment of section 304 by Pub. L. 93–353, § 103.

Amendments

1998—Subsec. (b)(2)(A), (C). Pub. L. 105–392 substituted “242k(m)” for “242k(n)”.

1993—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(1)(A), redesignated subpars. (B) to (E) as (A) to (D), respectively, and struck out former subpar. (A) which read as follows: “A report on—

“(i) the administration of sections 242b, 242k, and 242l of this title and subchapter VII of this chapter during the preceding fiscal year; and

“(ii) the current state and progress of health services research, health statistics, and health care technology.”

Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(1)(B), substituted “reports required in paragraph (1) shall be prepared through the National Center” for “reports required by subparagraphs (B) through (E) of paragraph (2) shall be prepared through the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research and the National Center”.

Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(2)(A)–(D), (3), redesignated subsec. (g)(2) as subsec. (c), substituted “shall take” for “shall (A) take” and “and shall publish” for “and (B) publish”, and struck out former subsec. (c) which read as follows: “The aggregate number of grants and contracts made or entered into under sections 242b and 242c of this title for any fiscal year respecting a particular means of delivery of health services or another particular aspect of health services may not exceed twenty; and the aggregate amount of funds obligated under grants and contracts under such sections for any fiscal year respecting a particular means of delivery of health services or another particular aspect of health services may not exceed $5,000,000.”

Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(4), substituted “section 3324 of title 31 and section 5 of title 41” for “sections 3648 and 3709 of the Revised Statutes (31 U.S.C. 529; 41 U.S.C. 5)”.

Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(2)(B), (C), (E), redesignated par. (2) as subsec. (c) and struck out par. (1) which read as follows: “The Secretary shall—

“(A) publish, make available and disseminate, promptly in understandable form and on as broad a basis as practicable, the results of health services research, demonstrations, and evaluations undertaken and supported under sections 242b and 242c of this title;

“(B) make available to the public data developed in such research, demonstrations, and evaluations; and

“(C) provide indexing, abstracting, translating, publishing, and other services leading to a more effective and timely dissemination of information on health services research, demonstrations, and evaluations in health care delivery to public and private entities and individuals engaged in the improvement of health care delivery and the general public; and undertake programs to develop new or improved methods for making such information available.”

Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 103–183, § 501(c)(5), struck out subsec. (h) which read as follows:

“(1) Except where the Secretary determines that unusual circumstances make a larger percentage necessary in order to effectuate the purposes of section 242k of this title, a grant or contract under any of such sections of this title with respect to any project for construction of a facility or for acquisition of equipment may not provide for payment of more than 50 per centum of so much of the cost of the facility or equipment as the Secretary determines is reasonably attributable to research, evaluation, or demonstration purposes.

“(2) Laborers and mechanics employed by contractors and subcontractors in the construction of such a facility shall be paid wages at rates not less than those prevailing on similar work in the locality, as determined by the Secretary of Labor in accordance with the Act of March 3, 1931 (40 U.S.C. 267a—267a–5, known as the Davis-Bacon Act); and the Secretary of Labor shall have with respect to any labor standards specified in this paragraph the authority and functions set forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 (5 U.S.C. Appendix) and section 276c of title 40.

“(3) Such grants and contracts shall be subject to such additional requirements as the Secretary may by regulation prescribe.”

1990—Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 101–527, § 7(b)(2)(A), inserted “or for a grant under section 242k(n) of this title,” after “demonstration project,”.

Subsec. (b)(2)(C). Pub. L. 101–527, § 7(b)(2)(B), inserted before period at end “, except that peer review groups regarding grants under section 242k(n) of this title may include appropriately qualified such officers and employees”.

Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 101–527, § 7(d), struck out par. (3) which related to applications submitted under section 242k of this title for which a grant or contract may be made under another provision of this chapter.

1989—Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(A), amended section catchline.

Subsec. (a)(1)(A)(i). Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(B)(i), substituted “sections 242b, 242k, and 242l of this title and subchapter VII of this chapter” for “sections 242b, 242c, 242k, and 242l of this title and section 242n of this title”.

Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(B)(ii), substituted “the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research” for “the National Center for Health Services Research and Health Care Technology Assessment”.

Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(C)(i), which directed amendment of par. (1) by substituting “section 242b, 242k, or 242l of this title” for “sections 242b, 242c, 242k, 242l, and 242n of this title”, was executed by making the substitution for “section 242b, 242c, 242k, 242l, or 242n of this title” as the probable intent of Congress.

Subsec. (b)(2)(A). Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(C)(ii), substituted “under section 242k of this title” for “under section 242b or 242c of this title,” in first sentence, struck out second sentence which read as follows: “Each application for a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement in an amount exceeding $50,000 of direct costs for the dissemination of research findings or the development of research agendas (including conferences, workshops, and meetings) shall be submitted to a standing peer review group with persons with appropriate expertise and shall not be submitted to any peer review group established to review applications for research, evaluation, or demonstration projects.”, and amended last sentence generally. Prior to amendment, last sentence read as follows: “The Secretary, acting through the Director of the National Center for Health Services Research and Health Care Technology Assessment (or, as appropriate, through the Director of the National Center for Health Statistics), shall establish such peer review groups as may be necessary to provide for such an evaluation of an application described in the first two sentences of this subparagraph.”

Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 101–239, § 6103(e)(4)(C)(iii), substituted “the Director of the National Center for Health Statistics” for “the Director involved”.