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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9812 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9812

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to 
 States to establish, increase the availability of, and improve access 
   to, qualified health care programs to increase and strengthen the 
                 health care workforce in such States.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 25, 2024

Mr. Comer (for himself and Mr. McGarvey) introduced the following bill; 
  which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
    addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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 direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to 
 States to establish, increase the availability of, and improve access 
   to, qualified health care programs to increase and strengthen the 
                 health care workforce in such States.

    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 Care Workforce Investment 
Act''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress to address the Nation's shortage of a 
broad spectrum of health care professionals, including direct support 
professionals, nurses, mental health professionals, nurse aides, and 
emergency medical services professionals by incentivizing collaboration 
between health care programs, health care industry partners, and States 
to grow and strengthen the education and training pipeline of health 
care professionals within the Nation to better serve patients and 
families by:
            (1) Improving the ability of a broad variety of health care 
        programs to meet the workforce demands and capacity of the 
        States, including the workforce demands of historically 
        underserved areas.
            (2) Raising awareness of an interest in a broad variety of 
        health care occupations and reducing the barriers of access to 
        the health care programs necessary to pursue these occupations, 
        including financial barriers.
            (3) Improving pathways between high school career and 
        technical programs and other health care programs.
            (4) Developing strategies for health care organizations and 
        educational and training programs to support career growth and 
        development for their employees and for students.

SEC. 3. HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE IMPROVEMENT PLANS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 
this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall award grants to 
States to establish and implement a State Health Care Workforce 
Improvement Plan (in this section referred to as the ``Workforce 
Plan'') to increase and strengthen the health care workforce in such 
States.
    (b) Workforce Plans.--
            (1) In general.--A State seeking a grant under this section 
        shall submit to the Secretary, at such time and in such manner 
        as specified by the Secretary, a Workforce Plan containing the 
        following information:
                    (A) A description of the State Health Care 
                Workforce Council (in accordance with subsection 
                (c)(1)(A)) designated by such State to administer such 
                Workforce Plan.
                    (B) The means by which such Council will 
                incentivize and establish public-private partnerships 
                with program partners (as defined in subsection (e)(3)) 
                to provide education and training that will--
                            (i) raise awareness of, and interest in, 
                        careers in health care;
                            (ii) improve pathways between high school 
                        career, technical programs, and other qualified 
                        health care programs (as defined in subsection 
                        (c)(2)(A)(i));
                            (iii) increase the availability of, and 
                        improve access to, such qualified health care 
                        programs;
                            (iv) reduce barriers to accessing such 
                        qualified health care programs, including 
                        financial barriers to enrolling in such 
                        programs; and
                            (v) assist employers in the health care 
                        industry in supporting career growth and 
                        development for employees.
                    (C) The method by which such qualified health care 
                programs will be evaluated, including--
                            (i) the benchmarks and improvement 
                        activities used to identify and reduce 
                        disparities in access to, and the utilization 
                        of, such programs; and
                            (ii) adequate safeguards to ensure that 
                        such programs are invested in the continuing 
                        excellence of such programs, including the 
                        education, recruitment, and training of health 
                        care program faculty and staff, and the 
                        maintenance and acquisition of medical 
                        equipment utilized by such program.
                    (D) The State's plan (if any) to implement an 
                income tax credit (or other tax credit) for program 
                partners.
            (2) Publication of approved workforce plans.--The Secretary 
        shall make publicly available on an internet website of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services each approved Workforce 
        Plan.
    (c) Administration of Workforce Plans.--
            (1) Administration and funding.--
                    (A) State health care workforce council.--Each 
                State shall establish (or appoint as existing body to 
                serve as) a State Health Care Workforce Council (in 
                this section referred to as the ``Council'') to 
                administer the Workforce Plan. Such Council shall--
                            (i) establish and maintain the State Health 
                        Care Workforce Investment Fund (as described in 
                        subparagraph (B));
                            (ii) provide for education and training 
                        opportunities through qualified health care 
                        programs (as described in paragraph (2)(A));
                            (iii) evaluate such programs and provide 
                        incentives to successful programs; and
                            (iv) provide scholarships to eligible 
                        individuals to reduce financial barriers to 
                        accessing such programs (in accordance with the 
                        requirements under paragraph (2)(B)).
                    (B) Health care workforce investment fund.--Each 
                Council shall establish a State Health Care Workforce 
                Investment Fund (in this section referred to as the 
                ``Fund'') for the purpose of funding the activities 
                described in the Workforce Plan, including--
                            (i) providing funding for new or 
                        established qualified health care programs;
                            (ii) establishing and supporting 
                        scholarships for eligible individuals seeking 
                        to enroll in such qualified health care 
                        programs to reduce financial barriers for such 
                        individuals;
                            (iii) providing incentives to reward 
                        successful qualified health care programs (in 
                        accordance with paragraph (2)(A)(iii));
                            (iv) supporting related administrative 
                        research, consulting, planning, and analysis of 
                        the health care workforce needs within such 
                        State; and
                            (v) encouraging investment in the Fund from 
                        private, financial, and philanthropic 
                        organizations to implement the work described 
                        in the Workforce Plan.
            (2) Workforce plan components.--
                    (A) Qualified health care program.--
                            (i) Qualified health care program 
                        defined.--In this section, the term ``qualified 
                        health care program'' means an educational or 
                        training program, including a high school 
                        health care vocational program, that is 
                        required to obtain or maintain employment or a 
                        professional credential or license for a career 
                        in a hospital or other health care setting.
                            (ii) Criteria.--In order to receive funding 
                        from a Council, a qualified health care program 
                        must--
                                    (I) target the specific needs of 
                                historically underserved areas (as 
                                defined in subsection (e)(2));
                                    (II) demonstrate how such program 
                                will benefit the workforce demands and 
                                capacity in underserved areas; and
                                    (III) assist eligible individuals 
                                in meeting some or all of the 
                                requirements for a certificate, 
                                training, or license in health care 
                                issued by a State.
                            (iii) Incentives for successful programs.--
                        A Council may award additional financial 
                        incentives to eligible individuals for programs 
                        that demonstrate an increase or other 
                        improvement in--
                                    (I) the number of such individuals 
                                completing such program;
                                    (II) the passage rate, particularly 
                                the first-time passage rate, on any 
                                State, health care, credential, 
                                examination by graduates of such 
                                program;
                                    (III) the ability of such qualified 
                                health care programs to meet the 
                                workforce demands of the communities 
                                such programs serve; and
                                    (IV) any other objective factors as 
                                determined by such Council.
                    (B) Scholarships.--
                            (i) In general.--The Council, in accordance 
                        with clause (ii), may award scholarships to 
                        eligible individuals for purposes of enrolling 
                        in a qualified health care program.
                            (ii) Conditions for award.--In awarding 
                        scholarships under the Workforce Plan, the 
                        Council shall--
                                    (I) award not more than two 1-year 
                                scholarships to an eligible individual; 
                                and
                                    (II) require that such eligible 
                                individual--
                                            (aa) submit written proof 
                                        of enrollment in a qualified 
                                        health care program to the 
                                        Council prior to receipt of 
                                        such scholarship funds;
                                            (bb) upon completion of 
                                        such program, work as a 
                                        trained, licensed, or certified 
                                        health care provider (in 
                                        accordance with State law) in 
                                        the State in which such program 
                                        was conducted, for a period of 
                                        not less than 1 year for each 
                                        academic year for which a 
                                        scholarship was provided; and
                                            (cc) sign a promissory note 
                                        agreeing to repay the amount of 
                                        the scholarship awarded upon 
                                        failure to complete the 
                                        requirement under item (bb).
    (d) Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) Council report.--Not later than December 31, 2024, and 
        annually thereafter, each Council shall submit to the Secretary 
        a report on the activities undertaken in accordance with the 
        Workforce Plan, including--
                    (A) a detailed accounting of all monies raised and 
                expended by the Fund, including the sources and 
                recipients of such monies;
                    (B) the amount of funds spent to conduct each 
                activity under such Workforce Plan;
                    (C) data and descriptive information related to the 
                scholarships awarded pursuant to subsection (c)(2)(B), 
                including--
                            (i) the criteria used to award such 
                        scholarships;
                            (ii) the number of scholarships awarded and 
                        the amount of each such scholarship; and
                            (iii) the State and county of residence (or 
                        equivalent) of each scholarship recipient;
                    (D) data and descriptive information with respect 
                to each qualified health care program receiving funds 
                under this section, including--
                            (i) which such programs have received 
                        incentives pursuant to subsection 
                        (c)(2)(A)(iii);
                            (ii) the overall graduation, workforce 
                        participation, and retention rates for each 
                        such program; and
                            (iii) the graduation, workforce 
                        participation, and retention rates for eligible 
                        individuals enrolled in each such program, 
                        disaggregated by those eligible individuals who 
                        received a scholarship pursuant to subsection 
                        (c)(2)(B) and those who did not;
                    (E) the number of eligible individuals practicing 
                or employed in the health care field in a respective 
                State, including the training, licensure, or credential 
                of such individual; and
                    (F) any other data demonstrating the need for 
                professionals with such training, licensures, or 
                credentials in such State.
            (2) Report to congress.--Not later than June 1, 2025, and 
        annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
        report, including--
                    (A) the information submitted by each Council under 
                paragraph (1); and
                    (B) any other information as determined by the 
                Secretary, including information ensuring compliance 
                with this section and accountability with respect to 
                any Federal funds disbursed under a Workforce Plan.
    (e) Other Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Eligible individual.--The term ``eligible individual'' 
        means an individual enrolling in a qualified health care 
        program to pursue or advance a career in health care.
            (2) Historically underserved county or region.--The term 
        ``historically underserved county or region'' means a county or 
        a region of a State in which, for the 5 years immediately 
        preceding such State's application under subsection (b)--
                    (A) objective data with the respect to the health 
                care workforce in such State demonstrates the needs and 
                demands of a State's health care workforce that exceed 
                the average for such State during such years; and
                    (B) unemployment among health care providers as 
                calculated by the Department of Labor of a State 
                demonstrating a countywide or regional rate of 
                unemployment which exceeds statewide unemployment in 
                such State.
            (3) Program partner.--The term ``program partner'' means an 
        individual or an entity that gifts, grants, or donates monies 
        to a State's Fund, and that is--
                    (A) a health care provider (as defined in 
                accordance with State law);
                    (B) a licensed health care facility operating in 
                such State; or
                    (C) a business, corporation, or health care 
                association doing business in, and incorporated under, 
                the laws of such State.
    (f) Funding.--
            (1) In general.--Amounts in the Medicare Improvement Fund 
        established under section 1898 of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1395iii(a)) shall be available, as provided in advance 
        in appropriation Acts, to carry out this section.
            (2) State limitation.--A State with an approved Workforce 
        Plan under this section shall be eligible to receive an amount 
        not to exceed 50 percent of the amount of the State 
        appropriated match to the State Fund established under this 
        section.
            (3) Overall limitation.--In no case shall the aggregate 
        amount made available under paragraph (1) exceed 25 percent of 
        the amount of the combined annual appropriations of the Nurse 
        Corps Scholarship Program and the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment 
        Program authorized pursuant to section 846 of the Public Health 
        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 297n).
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