Sponsors (2)
Introduced May 22, 2025 by John Peter Ricketts · Last progress May 22, 2025
The bill seeks to improve the CBO's health-cost analyses and transparency through an expert advisory panel and annual reporting, trading higher-quality, more informed policymaking against risks of industry influence, potential erosion of CBO independence, and modest new costs to taxpayers.
Taxpayers, state and local governments, Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and patients with chronic conditions: the CBO will receive expert, cross-disciplinary advice that can improve the accuracy of health-cost estimates and analytic studies used in budgeting and policy decisions.
Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and other health program recipients: better CBO health models and cost estimates can lead to more informed legislation and program design affecting Medicare, Medicaid, and related health services.
Taxpayers and health stakeholders (e.g., hospitals and health systems): an annual public report increases transparency about which recommendations the CBO received and how they were used, helping the public evaluate CBO work.
Taxpayers and patients with chronic conditions: panel members' industry experience could create conflicts of interest that bias the advice the CBO receives and influence cost estimates.
Taxpayers and state governments: if the CBO relies heavily on the advisory panel, the CBO's independent analytic judgment could be weakened when recommendations are adopted without sufficient internal scrutiny.
Taxpayers: establishing and supporting the advisory panel will impose additional administrative costs borne by taxpayers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a 15-member panel of health advisors housed at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to provide technical expertise and recommendations to improve CBO’s health and health-care studies, models, and cost estimates. The panel must meet at least annually, produce an annual report with recommendations supported by at least 9 members, and the CBO Director must describe how the recommendations were used and publish the report publicly. Panel members serve as special government employees with staggered three-year terms (up to two terms), are appointed by Budget Committee leaders and the CBO Director, and the CBO Director sets priorities (in consultation with Budget Committee leadership and members), conflict-of-interest disclosures, and confidentiality rules.