NATIONAL BIPARTISAN COMMISSION ON THE FUTURE OF MEDICARE.

SEC. 4021. NATIONAL BIPARTISAN COMMISSION ON THE FUTURE OF MEDICARE. (a) Establishment.—There is established a commission to be known as the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare (in this section referred to as the “Commission”). (b) Duties of the Commission.—The Commission shall— (1) review and analyze the long-term financial condition of the medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.); (2) identify problems that threaten the financial integrity of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund established under that title (42 U.S.C. 1395i, 1395t), including— (A) the financial impact on the medicare program of the significant increase in the number of medicare eligible individuals which will occur beginning approximately during 2010 and lasting for approximately 25 years, and (B) the extent to which current medicare update indexes do not accurately reflect inflation; (3) analyze potential solutions to the problems identified under paragraph (2) that will ensure both the financial integrity of the medicare program and the provision of appropriate benefits under such program, including methods used by other nations to respond to comparable demographic patterns in eligibility for health care benefits for elderly and disabled individuals and trends in employment-related health care for retirees; (4) make recommendations to restore the solvency of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the financial integrity of the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund; (5) make recommendations for establishing the appropriate financial structure of the medicare program as a whole; (6) make recommendations for establishing the appropriate balance of benefits covered and beneficiary contributions to the medicare program; (7) make recommendations for the time periods during which the recommendations described in paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) should be implemented; (8) make recommendations regarding the financing of graduate medical education (GME), including consideration of alternative broad-based sources of funding for such education and funding for institutions not currently eligible for such GME support that conduct approved graduate medical residency programs, such as children’s hospitals; (9) make recommendations on modifying age-based eligibility to correspond to changes in age-based eligibility under 111 STAT. 348the OASDI program and on the feasibility of allowing individuals between the age of 62 and the medicare eligibility age to buy into the medicare program; (10) make recommendations on the impact of chronic disease and disability trends on future costs and quality of services under the current benefit, financing, and delivery system structure of the medicare program; (11) make recommendations regarding a comprehensive approach to preserve the program; and (12) review and analyze such other matters as the Commission deems appropriate. (c) Membership.— (1) Number and appointment.—The Commission shall be composed of 17 members, of whom— (A) four shall be appointed by the President; (B) six shall be appointed by the Majority Leader of the Senate, in consultation with the Minority Leader of the Senate, of whom not more than 4 shall be of the same political party; (C) six shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, of whom not more than 4 shall be of the same political party; and (D) one, who shall serve as Chairman of the Commission, appointed jointly by the President, Majority Leader of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. (2) Deadline for appointment.—Members of the Commission shall be appointed by not later than December 1, 1997. (3) Terms of appointment.—The term of any appointment under paragraph (1) to the Commission shall be for the life of the Commission. (4) Meetings.—The Commission shall meet at the call of its Chairman or a majority of its members. (5) Quorum.—A quorum shall consist of 8 members of the Commission, except that 4 members may conduct a hearing under subsection (e). (6) Vacancies.—A vacancy on the Commission shall be filled in the same manner in which the original appointment was made not later than 30 days after the Commission is given notice of the vacancy and shall not affect the power of the remaining members to execute the duties of the Commission. (7) Compensation.—Members of the Commission shall receive no additional pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of their service on the Commission. (8) Expenses.—Each member of the Commission shall receive travel expenses and per diem in lieu of subsistence in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United States Code. (d) Staff and Support Services.— (1) Executive director.— (A) Appointment.—The Chairman shall appoint an executive director of the Commission. (B) Compensation.—The executive director shall be paid the rate of basic pay for level V of the Executive Schedule.111 STAT. 349 (2) Staff.—With the approval of the Commission, the executive director may appoint such personnel as the executive director considers appropriate. (3) Applicability of civil service laws.—The staff of the Commission shall be appointed without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, and shall be paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title (relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates). (4) Experts and consultants.—With the approval of the Commission, the executive director may procure temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code. (5) Physical facilities.—The Administrator of the General Services Administration shall locate suitable office space for the operation of the Commission. The facilities shall serve as the headquarters of the Commission and shall include all necessary equipment and incidentals required for the proper functioning of the Commission. (e) Powers of Commission.— (1) Hearings and other activities.—For the purpose of carrying out its duties, the Commission may hold such hearings and undertake such other activities as the Commission determines to be necessary to carry out its duties. (2) Studies by gao.—Upon the request of the Commission, the Comptroller General shall conduct such studies or investigations as the Commission determines to be necessary to carry out its duties. (3) Cost estimates by congressional budget office and office of the chief actuary of hcfa.— (A) The Director of the Congressional Budget Office or the Chief Actuary of the Health Care Financing Administration, or both, shall provide to the Commission, upon the request of the Commission, such cost estimates as the Commission determines to be necessary to carry out its duties. (B) The Commission shall reimburse the Director of the Congressional Budget Office for expenses relating to the employment in the office of the Director of such additional staff as may be necessary for the Director to comply with requests by the Commission under subparagraph (A). (4) Detail of federal employees.—Upon the request of the Commission, the head of any Federal agency is authorized to detail, without reimbursement, any of the personnel of such agency to the Commission to assist the Commission in carrying out its duties. Any such detail shall not interrupt or otherwise affect the civil service status or privileges of the Federal employee. (5) Technical assistance.—Upon the request of the Commission, the head of a Federal agency shall provide such technical assistance to the Commission as the Commission determines to be necessary to carry out its duties. (6) Use of mails.—The Commission may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as Federal agencies and shall, for purposes of the frank, be 111 STAT. 350considered a commission of Congress as described in section 3215 of title 39, United States Code. (7) Obtaining information.—The Commission may secure directly from any Federal agency information necessary to enable it to carry out its duties, if the information may be disclosed under section 552 of title 5, United States Code. Upon request of the Chairman of the Commission, the head of such agency shall furnish such information to the Commission. (8) Administrative support services.—Upon the request of the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to the Commission on a reimbursable basis such administrative support services as the Commission may request. (9) Printing.—For purposes of costs relating to printing and binding, including the cost of personnel detailed from the Government Printing Office, the Commission shall be deemed to be a committee of the Congress. (f) Report.—Not later than March 1, 1999, the Commission shall submit a report to the President and Congress which shall contain a detailed statement of only those recommendations, findings, and conclusions of the Commission that receive the approval of at least 11 members of the Commission. (g) Termination.—The Commission shall terminate 30 days after the date of submission of the report required in subsection (f). (h) Authorization of appropriations.—There are authorized to be appropriated $1,500,000 to carry out this section. 60 percent of such appropriation shall be payable from the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, and 40 percent of such appropriation shall be payable from the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i, 1395t).