,i  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #acbc  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,february #bb1       
#bjai,mr4 ,peterson 7for himself and    
,mr4 ,tipton7 introduced the following  
bill2 which was referred to the         
,committee on ,energy and ,commerce1 and
 in addition to the ,committee on ,ways 
and ,means1 for a period to be          
subsequently determined by the ,speaker1
 in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the           
jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
,a ,,bill  ,to amend title ,,xviii of   
the ,social ,security ,act to extend the
 floor on the area wage index under the 
inpatient prospective payment system to 
certain sole community hospitals and to 
amend the ,public ,health ,service ,act 
to provide eligibility for certain sole 
community hospitals to discounted drug  
prices under the #cdj;,b drug pricing   
program4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act   
may be cited as the ,rural ,hospital    
,frontier ,fairness ,act4  #b4          

,extending floor on area wage index to  
certain sole community hospitals        
,section #ahhf7;d77#c77;,e77iii7 of the 
,social ,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4   
#acieww7d77#c77;,e77iii77 is amended--  
7#a7 in subclause 7,i71 by inserting    
before the period at the end the        
following3 and1 for discharges occurring
 on or after ,october #a1 #bjai1 the    
area wage index applicable under this   
subparagraph to any sole community      
hospital that is located not more than  
#ge miles from the closest frontier     
,state and that makes an election under 
subclause 7,v7 may not be less than     
#a4jj2 and  7#b7 by adding at the end   
the following new subclause3  7,v7 ,sole
 community hospital election ,the       
,secretary shall provide for a process  
under which a sole community hospital   
described in subclause 7,i7 may elect1  
at such time and in such manner as      
specified by the ,secretary1 to apply   
subclause 7,i7 to such sole community   
hospital4  4  #c4 ,eligibility of       

certain sole community hospitals for    
discounted drug prices under the #cdj;,b
 drug pricing program  7a7 ,in general  
,section #cdj;,b7a77#d7 of the ,public  
,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4    
#bef;b7a77#d77 is amended by adding at  
the end the following new subparagraph3 
7,p7 ,an entity that is a sole community
 hospital 7as defined in section        
#ahhf7;d77#e77;,c77iii7 of the ,social  
,security ,act71 that was classified as 
such a hospital before ,october #a1     
#bjae1 and that is located not more than
 #ge miles from the closest frontier    
,state 7as defined in section           
#ahhf7;d77#c77;,e77iii77,,ii7 of such   
,act74  4  7b7 ,effective date  7#a7 ,in
 general ,the amendment made by         
subsection 7a7 shall apply to drugs     
purchased on or after the first day of  
the first month that begins more than   
#fj days after the date of the enactment
 of this ,act4  7#b7 ,conforming #cdj;,b
 agreements ,the ,secretary of ,health  
and ,human ,services shall provide for  

such timely modification of agreements  
entered into under section #cdj;,b of   
the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db  
,u4,s4,c4 #bef;b7 as is necessary to    
provide for the application of the      
amendment made by subsection 7a7 on a   
timely basis consistent with paragraph  
7#a74