Public Comment

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation United States Department of Health and Human Services 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 424E Washington, DC 20201 Submitted via email: TownHallMeetingsComments@hhs.gov Economic Impact of Health Care Regulation: The Impact of the Medicare Payment Cap on Federally Qualified Community Health Centers The National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc. (“NACHC”) is pleased to respond to the Health and Human Services' Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation’s (HHS/ASPE) request for comment pursuant to the House Appropriations Committee Report 108-636 which calls on HHS and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to examine the major federal regulations governing the health care industry. These comments address the economic impact of the Medicare cap for federally qualified health centers and the impact of the Medicare Contractor Reform proposal currently being implemented. NACHC is the national membership organization for federally supported and federally recognized health centers (hereinafter interchangeably referred to as “health centers” or “FQHCs”) throughout the country, and is an Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) organization. BACKGROUND: FEDERALLY QUALIFIED COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS There are, at present, more than 1000 health center organizations that provide health services through approximately 5000 clinic sites located ...