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H.R.5628 / 106th Congress

Common Sense Patients' Bill of Rights Act

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health and Environment.

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in House · Nov 3, 2000

Common Sense Patients' Bill of Rights Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), and the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to: (1) provide for a patients' bill of rights, patient access to information, and accountability of health plans; and (2) expand access to health care coverage through tax incentives.Title I: Patients' Bill Of Rights - Subtitle A: Right Advice and Care - Establishes patients' rights to medical advice and care (under ERISA, PHSA, and IRC).Subtitle B: Right to Information About Plans And Providers - Establishes patients' rights to information about plans and providers.Subtitle C: Right To Hold Health Plans Accountable - Establishes patients' rights to hold health plans accountable.Subtitle D: State Flexibility in Applying Requirements to Health Insurance Issuers - Provides for State flexibility in applying requirements to health insurance issuers.Subtitle E: Effective Dates; Coordination in Implementation; Miscellaneous Provisions - Provides for coordination in implementation.Title II: Remedies - Amends ERISA to provide for: (1) availability of, and limitations on, court remedies relating to medically reviewable determinations and timely review of claims; and (2) expanded court remedies relating to group health plan determinations that are not medically reviewable.Title III: Health Care Coverage Access Tax Incentives - Amends the IRC with respect to medical savings accounts (MSAs) to: (1) repeal certain limitations on availability; (2) expand availability beyond employees of small employers and self-employed individuals; (3) increase the amount of allowable tax deduction for contributors; (4) allow both employers and employees to contribute; (5) reduce permitted deductibles under high-deductible heath plans, but provide for cost-of-living adjustments; (6) allow MSAs to be offered under cafeteria plans; and (7) direct the Comptroller General to study and report on the impact of MSAs on the cost of conventional insurance.Allows a tax deduction for 100 percent of the health insurance costs of self-employed individuals.Title IV: Health Care Paperwork - Establishes the Health Care Panel to Devise a Uniform Explanation of Benefits to devise a single form for use by third-party health care payers for remittance of claims to providers.

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Who introduced it

Rep. Shadegg, John B. [R-AZ-4] · R–AZ

Committees

  • Energy and Commerce Committee
  • Ways and Means Committee
  • Education and Workforce Committee
3 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

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  1. Referred to the Subcommittee on Health and Environment.

  2. Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

  3. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  4. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  5. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  6. Referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  7. Introduced in House

  8. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

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Related bills identified by Congress.gov

No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.

Source last updated: Jun 3, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

Explore the bill from different angles

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Neutral evidence review

Objective

Analyze H.R.5628 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

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Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

Examine H.R.5628 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.

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Institutions and government scope

Conservative lens

Examine H.R.5628 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.

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Individual rights and government power

Liberty lens

Examine H.R.5628 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.

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