PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Jul 30, 2024
Indian Health Service Emergency Claims Parity Act
This bill extends from 72 hours to 15 days the time period to notify the Purchased/Referred Care (PRC) program of emergency medical care received from a non-Indian Health Service (IHS) medical provider or at a non-IHS medical facility. This bill does not apply to individuals who are elderly or disabled, who continue to have a 30-day notification requirement for emergency services.
The IHS provides medical and dental services directly to American Indian and Alaska Native patients whenever possible. The PRC program pays for medical or dental care that is provided away from an IHS or tribal health care facility. The PRC program must be notified of requests for authorization of payment for health care services from a non-IHS provider.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
Currently in emergency cases, the patient, an individual on behalf of the patient, or the medical care provider must, within 72 hours after the beginning of treatment for the condition or after admission to a health care facility, notify a PRC authorizing official of the need for the emergency medical care. This bill instead allows the patient, other individual, or provider to notify PRC within 15 days of the treatment or admission.
People & committees
Sen. Rounds, Mike [R-SD] · R–SD
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Oct 2, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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