Byron Dorgan: “Like Senator Craig, I appreciate the cooperation of our colleagues in helping us to work through this issue. We have…”

“Like Senator Craig, I appreciate the cooperation of our colleagues in helping us to work through this issue. We have arrived at a solution that is agreeable to the majority of parties involved, while at the same time reaching our goal of providing relief to small providers and plans and public health programs that are struggling to prepare their systems for this cost. Senator Craig and I would have preferred that this bill go further in providing more time and coordination for affected entities. On the other hand, we acknowledge that others would prefer no action in this area. Since we are just one year from the scheduled compliance date, however, we recognize that all those affected need some certainty as they move forward with complying with the transactions and code sets regulation. Given that this bill does provide needed relief for our states and given the time constraints we are facing, we believe this compromise is appropriate and do not feel an additional extension can be acquired.”