[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9877 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9877
To improve the health of minority individuals, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 22, 2026
Mr. Ruiz (for himself, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Ms. Meng, Ms. Norton, Ms.
Bonamici, Ms. Chu, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Ms. Velazquez, Mrs. Ramirez,
Mr. Hernandez, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr. Lieu, Mr. Frost, Mr. Jackson
of Illinois, Ms. Salinas, Ms. Pressley, Mr. Espaillat, Ms. Mejia, Mr.
Menefee, Mr. Thanedar, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Carter of Louisiana,
Mrs. Grijalva, Ms. Tokuda, Ms. Randall, Mr. Aguilar, and Mrs. Hayes)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and
Means, Agriculture, Oversight and Government Reform, Education and
Workforce, the Judiciary, the Budget, Veterans' Affairs, Natural
Resources, Armed Services, Homeland Security, Financial Services,
Transportation and Infrastructure, and Foreign Affairs, for a period to
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve the health of minority individuals, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Health Equity and Accountability Act
of 2026''.
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.
The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
TITLE I--DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING
Sec. 1001. Strengthening data collection, improving data analysis, and
expanding data reporting.
Sec. 1002. Elimination of prerequisite of direct appropriations for
data collection and analysis.
Sec. 1003. Collection of data for the Medicare program.
Sec. 1004. Revision of HIPAA claims standards.
Sec. 1005. National Center for Health Statistics.
Sec. 1006. Disparities data collected by the Federal Government.
Sec. 1007. Data collection and analysis grants to minority-serving
institutions.
Sec. 1008. Safety and effectiveness of drugs with respect to racial and
ethnic background.
Sec. 1009. Improving health data regarding Native Hawaiians and Pacific
Islanders.
Sec. 1010. Data collection regarding pandemic preparedness, testing,
infections, and deaths.
Sec. 1011. Commission on Ensuring Data for Health Equity.
Sec. 1012. Task Force on Preventing Bias in AI and Algorithms.
Sec. 1013. Report on health of Middle Eastern and North African
populations.
Sec. 1014. Inclusion of Puerto Rico in National Survey on Drug Use and
Health.
TITLE II--CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY APPROPRIATE HEALTH AND HEALTH
CARE
Sec. 2001. Definitions.
Sec. 2002. Improving access to services for individuals with limited
english proficiency.
Sec. 2003. Ensuring standards for culturally and linguistically
appropriate services in health care.
Sec. 2004. Culturally and linguistically appropriate health care in the
public health service act.
Sec. 2005. Pilot program for improvement and development of state
medical interpreting services.
Sec. 2006. Training tomorrow's doctors for culturally and
linguistically appropriate care: graduate
medical education.
Sec. 2007. Federal reimbursement for culturally and linguistically
appropriate services under the Medicare,
Medicaid, and State Children's Health
Insurance programs.
Sec. 2008. Increasing understanding of and improving health literacy.
Sec. 2009. Requirements for health programs or activities receiving
Federal funds.
Sec. 2010. Report on Federal efforts to provide culturally and
linguistically appropriate health care
services.
Sec. 2011. English instruction for individuals with limited english
proficiency.
Sec. 2012. Implementation.
Sec. 2013. Language access services.
Sec. 2014. Medically underserved populations.
Sec. 2015. Improving access to Federal services by individuals with
limited English proficiency.
Sec. 2016. Stop Mental Health Stigma Act.
TITLE III--HEALTH WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
Subtitle A--Diversifying the Health Care Workplace
Sec. 3001. Amendment to the Public Health Service Act.
Sec. 3002. Hispanic-serving institutions, historically Black colleges
and universities, historically Black
professional or graduate institutions,
Asian American and Native American Pacific
Islander-serving institutions, Tribal
Colleges, regional community-based
organizations, and national minority
medical associations.
Sec. 3003. Loan repayment program of Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
Sec. 3004. Cooperative agreements for online degree programs at schools
of public health and schools of allied
health.
Sec. 3005. National Health Care Workforce Commission.
Sec. 3006. Scholarship and fellowship programs.
Sec. 3007. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program.
Sec. 3008. Rules for determination of full-time equivalent residents
for cost-reporting periods.
Sec. 3009. Developing and implementing strategies for local health
equity.
Sec. 3010. Health Professions Workforce Fund.
Sec. 3011. Future advancement of academic nursing.
Sec. 3012. Sense of Congress relating to graduate medical education.
Sec. 3013. Career support for skilled, internationally educated health
professionals.
Sec. 3014. Study and report on strategies for increasing diversity.
Sec. 3015. Conrad State 30 program; physician retention.
Sec. 3016. Grants for schools of medicine and schools of osteopathic
medicine in underserved areas.
Subtitle B--Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental
Health Workforce
Sec. 3021. Short title.
Sec. 3022. Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental
Health Workforce Scholarship Program.
Subtitle C--ACCESS in Mental Health Act
Sec. 3031. Short title.
Sec. 3032. Purpose.
Sec. 3033. Grants to support graduate programs in mental and behavioral
health professions at historically Black
colleges and universities, tribal colleges
and universities, and other minority-
serving institutions.
Subtitle D--Developing the Community Health Workforce Act
Sec. 3041. Improving recruitment and retention of Federal qualified
health center staff.
Sec. 3042. Community Health Center Workforce Pipeline Program.
Sec. 3043. Expanding hospital and FQHC partnerships for graduate
medical education.
Sec. 3044. Expanding FQHC services.
TITLE IV--IMPROVING HEALTH CARE ACCESS AND QUALITY
Sec. 4000. Definition.
Subtitle A--Reducing Barriers to Accessing Care
Sec. 4001. The Protecting Sensitive Locations Act.
Sec. 4002. Repeal of requirement for documentation evidencing
citizenship or nationality under the
Medicaid program.
Sec. 4003. Removing barriers to health care and nutrition assistance
for children, pregnant persons, and
lawfully present individuals.
Sec. 4004. Improve affordability and reduce premium costs of health
insurance for consumers.
Sec. 4005. Removing citizenship and immigration barriers to access to
affordable health care under the ACA.
Sec. 4006. HEAL for Immigrant Families Act.
Sec. 4007. Study on the uninsured.
Sec. 4008. Medicaid fallback coverage program for low-income adults in
non-expansion States.
Sec. 4009. Increase and extension of temporary enhanced FMAP for States
which begin to expend amounts for certain
mandatory individuals.
Subtitle B--Improvement of Coverage
Sec. 4101. Medicaid in the territories.
Sec. 4102. Extension of the Supplemental Security Income Program to
Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.
Sec. 4103. Extension of Medicare secondary payer.
Sec. 4104. Indian defined in title I of the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act.
Sec. 4105. Removing Medicare barrier to health care.
Sec. 4106. Lowering Medicare premiums and prescription drug costs.
Sec. 4107. Reducing cost-sharing, aligning income and resource
eligibility tests, simplifying enrollment,
and other program improvements for low-
income beneficiaries.
Sec. 4108. 100 percent FMAP for medical assistance provided by urban
Indian organizations.
Sec. 4109. 100 percent FMAP for medical assistance provided to a Native
Hawaiian through a Federally qualified
health center or a Native Hawaiian health
care system under the Medicaid program.
Sec. 4110. Repeal of requirement for estate recovery under the Medicaid
program.
Sec. 4111. Allow for suspension of Medicare benefits and premium
liability for individuals who are
incarcerated and provide a special
enrollment period around the date of
release.
Sec. 4112. Federal employee health benefits plans.
Sec. 4113. Continuation of Medicaid income eligibility standard for
pregnant individuals and infants.
Subtitle C--Expansion of Access
PART 1--General Provisions
Sec. 4201. Amendment to the Public Health Service Act.
Sec. 4202. Border health grants.
Sec. 4203. Critical access hospital improvements.
Sec. 4204. Medicare remote monitoring pilot projects.
Sec. 4205. Community health center collaborative access expansion.
Sec. 4206. Facilitating the provision of telehealth services across
State lines.
Sec. 4207. Scoring of preventive health savings.
Sec. 4208. Sense of Congress on maintenance of effort provisions
regarding children's health.
Sec. 4209. Protection of the HHS Offices of Minority Health.
Sec. 4210. Office of Minority Health in Veterans Health Administration
of Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 4211. Study of DSH payments to ensure hospital access for low-
income patients.
Sec. 4212. Reauthorization of programs under the Native Hawaiian Health
Care Improvement Act.
PART 2--Rural
Sec. 4221. Establishment of Rural Community Hospital (RCH) Program.
Sec. 4222. Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission and demonstration
projects.
Sec. 4223. Rural health care services.
PART 3--Indian Communities
Sec. 4231. Assistant Secretary of the Indian Health Service.
Sec. 4232. Extension of full Federal medical assistance percentage to
Indian health care providers.
Sec. 4233. Conferring with urban Indian organizations.
PART 4--Providers
Sec. 4241. Availability of non-English language speaking providers.
Sec. 4242. Access to essential community providers.
Sec. 4243. Provider network adequacy in communities of color.
PART 5--Dental
Sec. 4251. Improving access to dental care.
Sec. 4252. Oral health literacy and awareness campaign.
Sec. 4253. Ensuring Kids Have Access to Medically Necessary Dental Care
Act.
Subtitle D--Advancing Health Equity Through Payment and Delivery Reform
Sec. 4301. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reporting and
value-based programs.
Sec. 4302. Development and testing of disparity reducing delivery and
payment models.
Sec. 4303. Diversity in Centers for Medicare and Medicaid consultation.
Sec. 4304. Supporting safety net and community-based providers to
compete in value-based payment systems.
Sec. 4305. Improving access to care for Medicare and Medicaid
beneficiaries.
Subtitle E--Health Empowerment Zones
Sec. 4401. Designation of health empowerment zones.
Sec. 4402. Assistance to those seeking designation.
Sec. 4403. Benefits of designation.
Sec. 4404. Definition of Secretary.
Sec. 4405. Authorization of appropriations.
Subtitle F--Equitable Health Care for All
Sec. 4501. Data collection and reporting.
Sec. 4502. Requiring equitable health care in the hospital value-based
purchasing program.
Sec. 4503. Provision of inequitable health care as a basis for
permissive exclusion from Medicare and
State health care programs.
Sec. 4504. Office for Civil Rights and Health Equity of the Department
of Health and Human Services.
Sec. 4505. Prohibiting discrimination in health care.
Sec. 4506. Federal Health Equity Commission.
Sec. 4507. Grants for hospitals to promote equitable health care and
outcomes.
Subtitle G--Investing in Equity
Sec. 4601. Definitions.
Sec. 4602. Strategy to incentivize health equity.
Sec. 4603. Pay for Equity Advisory Council.
Subtitle H--Miscellaneous
Sec. 4701. Coverage for acupuncturist services under the Medicare
program.
Sec. 4702. Repeal of denial of benefits.
Sec. 4703. Addressing disparities in Medicare Advantage benchmark
levels based on penetration.
Sec. 4704. Women Expansion of Learning and Labor Safety (WELLS) Act.
Sec. 4705. Access to Birth Control Act.
Sec. 4706. Enabling State Medicaid programs to provide care through
health homes to individuals with sickle
cell disease.
Sec. 4707. Grant program for community schools and health equity.
Subtitle I--Territories Health Equity
PART 1--Medicare
subpart a--part a
Sec. 4801. Calculation of medicare DSH payments for IPPS hospitals in
Puerto Rico.
Sec. 4802. Rebasing target amount for hospitals in territories.
Sec. 4803. Medicare DSH target adjustment for hospitals in territories.
subpart b--part b
Sec. 4811. Eliminating late enrollment penalties under Part B of the
Medicare program for certain individuals
residing in Puerto Rico.
subpart c--medicare advantage (part c)
Sec. 4821. Adjustment in benchmark for low-base payment counties in
Puerto Rico.
subpart d--part d
Sec. 4831. Automatic eligibility of certain low-income territorial
residents for premium and cost-sharing
subsidies under the Medicare program;
sunset of enhanced allotment program.
PART 2--Miscellaneous
Sec. 4841. Medicaid and CHIP territory transparency and information.
Sec. 4842. Report on exclusion of territories from exchanges.
Sec. 4843. Access to coverage for individuals in certain areas without
any available exchange plans.
Sec. 4844. Prohibition on disclosing Medicaid data.
TITLE V--IMPROVING HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR WOMEN, GENDER-DIVERSE PEOPLE,
CHILDREN, AND FAMILIES
Subtitle A--Underserved Communities
Sec. 5001. Grants to promote health for underserved communities.
Subtitle B--Pregnancy Screening
Sec. 5101. Pregnancy intention screening initiative demonstration
program.
Sec. 5102. Birth defects prevention, risk reduction, and awareness.
Subtitle C--Pregnancy-Related Care
Sec. 5201. Community access, resources, and empowerment for moms.
Sec. 5202. MOMMIES.
Sec. 5203. Social determinants for moms.
Sec. 5204. Kira Johnson Act.
Sec. 5205. Perinatal workforce.
Sec. 5206. Data to Save Moms Act.
Sec. 5207. Moms matter.
Sec. 5208. Justice for Incarcerated Moms.
Sec. 5209. Tech to save moms.
Sec. 5210. IMPACT To Save Moms Act.
Sec. 5211. Protecting moms and babies against climate change.
Sec. 5212. Protect moms from domestic violence.
Sec. 5213. Midwives schools and programs expansion.
Sec. 5214. Gestational diabetes.
Sec. 5215. Consumer education campaign.
Sec. 5216. Bibliographic database of systematic reviews for care of
childbearing individuals and newborns.
Sec. 5217. Development of interprofessional maternity care educational
models and tools.
Sec. 5218. Dissemination of the quality family planning guidelines.
Subtitle D--Federal Agency Coordination on Maternal Health
Sec. 5301. Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Promotion of
Optimal Maternity Outcomes.
Sec. 5302. Expansion of CDC Prevention Research Centers Program to
include Centers on Optimal Maternity
Outcomes.
Sec. 5303. Expanding models to be tested by Center for Medicare and
Medicaid Innovation to explicitly include
maternity care and children's health
models.
Sec. 5304. Interagency update to the quality family planning
guidelines.
Subtitle E--Reproductive and Sexual Health
Sec. 5401. Sense of Congress on urgent issues concerning barriers to
abortion access and vital solutions.
Sec. 5402. Emergency contraception education and information programs.
Sec. 5403. Duties of pharmacies to ensure provision of FDA-approved
contraception.
Sec. 5404. Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act.
Sec. 5405. Compassionate assistance for rape emergencies.
Sec. 5406. Menstrual Equity for A