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Creates a new Medicare outpatient benefit that covers a defined set of multidisciplinary services for people medically diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and establishes a single-visit payment to qualified providers for those ALS-related services beginning January 1, 2027. The proposal sets initial payment amounts, a formula and schedule for future updates, requires no patient cost sharing for these payments, directs regulatory steps for provider qualification, allows payment adjustments for clinical trial participation and new technologies, preserves related outpatient department supplemental payments, and requires an NIH report (via NINDS) within 90 days identifying clinical trial staffing and administration challenges and recommendations.
The bill substantially expands and streamlines Medicare coverage and support for multidisciplinary ALS care and clinical trials—potentially improving access, outcomes, and treatment development for ALS patients—while increasing federal spending and raising implementation, adequacy-of-payment, and access-equality risks that could limit benefits or require budget offsets.
Medicare beneficiaries with ALS will receive comprehensive outpatient coverage for multidisciplinary ALS-related services with no patient cost-sharing and a single-visit payment to support coordinated care, improving access to necessary care.
People with ALS — including those in rural areas or with limited mobility — will gain better access to multidisciplinary care (including via expanded telehealth), which can extend lifespan and improve quality of life while reducing wait times and expanding clinic capacity.
Researchers, trial sites, and patients will benefit from increased support for clinical trials and incentives (payment adjustments for trial participation and new technologies), which should reduce trial startup delays, improve recruitment/retention, and accelerate development and adoption of new ALS therapies.
Taxpayers and the Medicare program face higher federal spending and increased budgetary pressure from expanded Medicare benefits and higher reimbursements for ALS services, which could worsen Medicare solvency or require offsets.
The $800 base single-visit payment (starting 2027) may be insufficient to cover the true cost of multidisciplinary ALS visits, risking reduced provider participation, lower service intensity, or limited access despite the policy intent.
Directing additional resources and reimbursement toward ALS-specific services could shift limited health system resources away from other conditions or programs, potentially reducing services for other patient populations.
Introduced February 3, 2026 by Lisa Murkowski · Last progress February 3, 2026