CARE Act of 2025
Sponsored By: Senator Susan Collins
Introduced
Summary
Pays Medicare for emergency ground ambulance care that does not result in transport. This bill would require the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to test a payment model that covers on-scene treatment and telehealth tied to emergency calls and generally aligns those payments with existing ambulance transport rates.
Show full summary
- Medicare beneficiaries would have Medicare-covered payment for ambulance responses that do not end in transport, and the model would be evaluated for effects on beneficiary outcomes and resource use.
- Ground ambulance providers and emergency medical services would be eligible for payment when they dispatch and treat without transporting, with rates set to broadly match transport payments; the model would run for 5 years.
- Telehealth services furnished with the treatment would count as an originating site for Medicare telehealth billing, and the Comptroller General must report within 4 years on access, outcomes, regional differences, best practices, and recommendations.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Medicare pilot pays ambulance on-scene care
If enacted, the bill would create a five-year Medicare pilot called the CARE Model. The pilot must start no later than two years after enactment. It would let Medicare Part B pay ground ambulance providers for treatment on scene when they respond but do not transport a patient. The Secretary would set payments so they generally match what Medicare would pay for an ambulance transport. If a telehealth visit happens with CARE services, the patient’s location would count as the telehealth originating site for billing. The Comptroller General would report to Congress within four years after the pilot starts on access, outcomes, regional differences, best practices, and recommendations.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Susan Collins
ME • R
Cosponsors
Peter Welch
VT • D
Sponsored 11/6/2025
Amy Klobuchar
MN • D
Sponsored 12/8/2025
Bill Cassidy
LA • R
Sponsored 12/8/2025
James Justice
WV • R
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Sheldon Whitehouse
RI • D
Sponsored 12/18/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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