S. 1935 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Jun 3, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryExpands palliative care for Medicare patients
Ever wondered what happens when someone with a serious illness like cancer needs comfort care instead of just treating the disease. This bill asks Medicare's innovation center to test a new program where teams of doctors, nurses and counselors work together to provide palliative care—treatment focused on comfort and quality of life—to Medicare patients with serious illnesses or injuries. The care would be available 24-7 in the community, and the program would track how it compares to regular care.
How it affects you
If you're on Medicare and have a serious illness or injury, this could eventually give you access to a coordinated care team focused on keeping you comfortable around the clock. The program would test whether this approach helps people and affects choices about hospice care, which is end-of-life care.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Jun 3, 2025)
Expanding Access to Palliative Care Act
This bill requires the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to test a model that provides community-based palliative care and care coordination for high-risk Medicare beneficiaries and that may replace the Medicare Care Choices Model (which ended on December 31, 2021).
Under the new model, multi-disciplinary teams must provide coordinated, palliative care that is available 24-7 for Medicare beneficiaries with serious illnesses or injuries, such as cancer. The CMMI must evaluate the model by comparing patients participating in the model with those outside of the model in relation to specified metrics, including the election and duration of hospice care.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 1935
A BILL
Expanding Access to Palliative Care Act
Sponsor: Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) · Introduced Jun 3, 2025 · Health · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Jun 3, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.”