Sec. 7. Improved customer service and protections for women
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Title III of the Public Health Service Act ( 42 U.S.C. 241 et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following: There is established within the Office of Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services an Office of the Ombudsperson on Women's Health (in this section referred to as the Office ). The Office shall be headed by an Ombudsperson who is appointed by the Secretary and reports directly to the Secretary. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall designate an individual to serve as the Ombudsperson of the Office on Women’s Health (referred to in this part as the Ombudsperson ).
The Ombudsperson, in coordination (as defined in paragraph (4)) with major medical, public health, and legal organizations, agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor, and consumer organizations shall develop recommendations to identify and better assist women in accessing health and human services. The Office shall— serve as the coordinator for the Department of Health and Human Services for complaints and issues with respect to the provision of health services to women that involve any administrative body within the Department of Health and Human Services, including the Office on Women’s Health, the Office of Population Affairs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, the Office of Adolescent Health, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Office of Civil Rights, and the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, and shall consult with the Department of Labor regarding such complaints and issues, in order to refer women to the appropriate agency for her complaint and issue; collect data and information about the complaints concerning health services for women that are received across the Department by the Ombudsperson and other agencies; help to coordinate assistance for women among the various administrative bodies of the Department of Health and Human Services; maintain and publicize a toll-free telephone number for women seeking assistance regarding issues related to a health service, and to report complaints; provide assistance within the Department of Health and Human Services, and in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, when there are barriers to getting information about a complaint, or accessing services or benefits; issue reports on how women's health care issues are addressed and handled within the Department of Health and Human Services and track what agencies are being responsive to complaints in order to improve customer service and improve women’s access to health services; work with other administrative bodies of the Department of Health and Human Services to address issues identified through fact-finding and inquiries;
Work with external stakeholders, such as pharmacies, providers, community-based organizations, clinics, and hospitals, to ensure that there is information regarding the cost-sharing and preventive services, including access to all Food and Drug Administration approved forms of contraception made available under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ( Public Law 111–148 ); and submit an annual report to Congress in accordance with subsection (e). In carrying out the duties of the Office, the Ombudsperson shall— evaluate each complaint received by the Office objectively; maintain confidentiality of any matter related to complaints, including the identities of the complainants and witnesses; and ensure that any action taken by the Ombudsperson, and other offices of the Department of Health and Human Services, with respect to such a matter does not negatively affect the ability of any woman to receive health care or benefits under a law administered by the Secretary.
To better identify and address issues related to health care for women, the Ombudsperson shall coordinate efforts with respect to such issues among— all entities within the Department of Health and Human Services; the Department of Labor; and any other Federal agency with jurisdiction over matters related to access to health care services for women. The Ombudsperson shall convene a public meeting quarterly to ensure communication and coordination of services for women. In carrying out the duties of the Office, the Ombudsperson, as appropriate, shall consult with State offices of health insurance consumer assistance and health insurance ombudsman programs for which a State has received a grant under section 2793.
Not later than September 30 of each year, the Office shall submit a report to Congress on the actions taken by the Office over the preceding year and the objectives of those actions. Such report shall be provided by the Ombudsperson directly to Congress without any prior comment or amendment by the Secretary. Each report submitted under paragraph
(1)shall include, with respect to the preceding year— statistical information, by region, on the volume of complaints received by the Office, the general nature of complaints, general information on complainants, and the percentage of complaints that resulted in a fact-finding inquiry; a summary of problems encountered by complainants, including information on the most pervasive or serious types of problems encountered by complainants, including an enumeration of actions that the Office has taken in response to such problems; policy recommendations that the Office made to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor to remedy continual problems or address areas of concerns that are reported to the Office to better inform policymaking, including an enumeration of actions that the Office has taken in response to such problems or concerns; and such other information as the Office considers relevant. The Ombudsperson shall seek comment from the Secretary on the report prepared for submission under paragraph (1), and the Ombudsperson shall submit to Congress the comments of the Secretary together with the annual report under paragraph (1). Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to preclude the Office from issuing additional reports on the activities of the Office. The Ombudsperson shall conduct a study on the network adequacy for women’s health services. Such study shall include— an analysis of the number of in-network providers for women’s health services across the United States, including State-by-State information on waiting times and distance traveled; an analysis of the availability of women’s health services, including contraception counseling and reproductive health services; the identification of geographic areas in which there may be a shortage of providers, clinics, and hospitals that are able to provide women with the full reproductive services; a comparison of information provided to women concerning in-network and out-of-network providers; an analysis of factors related to women’s health care access that identifies geographic gaps, health center availability, and barriers to providing such care in training, expertise, and stocking of drugs; information on a State’s balance billing policies as related to consumers and providers; and a State-by-State comparison of accessibility, essential community providers, and transparency of information. Not later than January 1, 2017, the Ombudsperson shall submit a report to Congress on the study conducted under paragraph (1). The report shall include the recommendations of the Ombudsperson with respect to network adequacy for women. .
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- Pub. L. 111-148
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