WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.) introduced the Medicare Advance Planning (MAP) for Care Act to encourage Medicare beneficiaries to create electronic advance directives, which are legal documents that allow patients to clearly articulate their preferences for their medical care should they suffer from a debilitating illness or condition. U.S. Representatives Greg Murphy, M.D. (R-N.C.) and Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) introduced a companion bill in the House.
“Every American deserves to make their own decisions about their medical care,” said Senator Coons. “If the unthinkable happens and you are unable to make a decision, an advance directive can make sure your medical care proceeds in line with your wishes. Communicating these wishes in advance helps doctors, patients, and families work together in the most difficult moments.”
“When someone is discussing end of life care with his or her doctor, they often feel powerless. This bill gives them control over the decisions in the last part of their life,” said Senator Cassidy.
According to a 2006 study by the Pew Research Center, 70% of Americans have thought about their health care preferences should they be faced with a life-threatening illness or injury, but only one third have completed an advance directive. Under the MAP for Care Act, Medicare beneficiaries would be able to voluntarily create and register an electronic advance directive with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) at any time. Advance directives would be created through and maintained by outside organizations certified by CMS, and could be modified or terminated at any time by the beneficiary. An advance directive would include any written statement that outlines the kind of treatment and care a beneficiary wants or does not want under certain conditions and can include identification of a health care proxy.
The bill is supported by the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American Nurses Association, the Delaware Academy of Medicine and Public Health, the National Right to Life Committee, MyDirectives, National Healthcare Decisions Day, Koda Health, and US Acute Care Solutions.
“As emergency physicians, we strongly support our patients’ ability to plan and make decisions about their health care preferences should they become incapacitated or lose their ability to communicate,” said L. Anthony Cirillo, MD, FACEP, President of the American College of Emergency Physicians.“Especially as our senior population continues to grow, making advance directives a routine process will ensure that patients are guaranteed the care and dignity they want, need, and deserve in their most fragile moments. ACEP strongly supports the ‘Medicare Advance Planning for Care Act’ and thanks Senators Cassidy and Coons and Representatives Murphy and Thompson for their continued leadership on this critical effort.”
“Medicare has the opportunity to lead and to help normalize the use of quality advance care plans to benefit all Americans, and the MAP for Care Act unleashes that opportunity with the common-sense innovation of improving, at last, its enrollment workflow,” said Jeff Zucker, co-Founder and former CEO, MyDirectives. “Senators Cassidy and Coons are to be congratulated for, once again, working together to do the right thing for everyone.”
“Advance care planning is desperate for a digital revolution, and the MAP for Care Act will help this effort by establishing a national platform for normalizing and memorializing healthcare discussions,” said Nathan A. Kottkamp, Founder/Chair, National Healthcare Decisions Day.
A one-pager is available here.
The text of the bill is available here.