Sponsors (4)
The bill creates a new, standardized Medicare home-care benefit that helps many beneficiaries remain at home and supports caregivers and worker pay, but it is narrowly capped, adds administrative complexity, and raises program and premium costs—leaving people with very high needs or without Part A/B coverage potentially undercovered.
Medicare beneficiaries (including people with disabilities and many seniors) would gain a new Part B-covered home care benefit for personal care and IADL assistance, enabling more people to remain at home instead of entering institutional care.
Families and Medicare beneficiaries would face lower caregiving burden and reduced risk of catastrophic out-of-pocket costs (and potential spend-down into Medicaid), easing financial and time pressures on unpaid family caregivers.
Home care workers would likely see higher and more stable pay because the Secretary must set a payment method that includes a reasonable wage floor and payment standards.
Medicare beneficiaries who need extensive daily care—those requiring more than the statutory 20 hours per week—would likely face unmet needs, increased hardship, and pressure to shift care back to family members or into institutional settings.
Expanding Medicare to cover home care would increase federal program costs and could raise Part B premiums for beneficiaries, increase subsidy/Medicare costs for taxpayers, or require offsets (higher taxes or greater deficits) if not fully funded.
New eligibility, certification, and administrative rules (including physician/authorized-practitioner certification and periodic reviews) could create delays, confusion, and extra paperwork for beneficiaries, providers, and state systems, slowing access to care.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Creates a capped Medicare Part B benefit to cover up to 20 hours/week of paid home care for eligible beneficiaries, with Part B premiums actuarially adjusted to pay for it.
Official title: To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to establish a Medicare home care benefit, and for other purposes.
Introduced August 3, 2026 by Debbie Dingell · Last progress August 3, 2026
Creates a new Medicare Part B benefit that pays for limited personal home care services for eligible beneficiaries who need help with activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living. The benefit is capped at 20 hours per week, requires a treating practitioner’s plan of care, excludes duplicative Medicaid long-term services, and will be implemented through HHS rulemaking. The bill instructs CMS to set payment rates with a wage floor for home care workers, directs the Chief Actuary to estimate premium impacts, and requires Part B premiums to be adjusted to reflect the actuarial cost of the new benefit; the benefit becomes available for services starting the first plan year beginning more than two years after enactment.