Lead Letter to Acting IRS Commissioner Advocating Increased Coverage
Buchanan’s Chronic Disease Flexible Coverage Act Passed House in March
WASHINGTON —Yesterday, Congressman Vern Buchanan, Vice Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and Chair of the Health Subcommittee, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.) led a letter to Acting Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Gary A. Shapley, Jr. calling on the agency to update and expand the list of services and treatments for chronic diseases covered under an employer-sponsored high-deductible health plan (HDHP).
Under IRS Notice 2019-45, established during the first Trump Administration, HDHPs can provide coverage for high-value chronic disease management services without requiring individuals to first meet a deductible. Such services and treatments currently include items like beta-blockers for patients with congestive heart failure, blood pressure monitors for patients with hypertension and glucometers for patients with diabetes, among others.
In their letter to Acting Commissioner Shapley, Health Subcommittee Chairman Buchanan, Chairman Smith and Rep. Panetta detail the prevalence of chronic disease and the extent to which treatments drive a substantial amount of the nation’s health care spending—underscoring the need for expanding coverage to additional treatments:
“Six in ten Americans live with at least one chronic disease, and nearly 90 percent of our nation’s $4.5 trillion in annual health care spending goes toward treating patients with chronic and mental health conditions. Chronic diseases are among the ten leading causes of death in the United States. Americans continue to face rising health care costs due to the high prevalence of chronic disease, with out-of-pocket health care costs alone increasing by over 7 percent in 2024. These cost increases pose an acute challenge for the more than half of American workers enrolled in a high-deductible health plan (HDHP)…
“We ask that you use your authority to make updating Notice 2019-45 a top priority of the agency to expand the list of allowed chronic disease management services. An expansion of this policy would have a significant impact on millions of Americans and will mark a powerful step toward ending the chronic disease epidemic”
This request follows Ways and Means Committee activity examining the chronic disease epidemic in the United States, including hearings focused on the need for greater chronic disease prevention and treatments, ways to empower patients and families with options and incentives to promote healthier living and the importance of early detection. Additionally, last month, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Buchanan’s Chronic Disease Flexible Coverage Act (H.R. 919), which would codify in law the 2019 Trump Administration guidance and improve the health of millions of Americans living with chronic disease.
Read the full letter here.
