II 

Calendar No. 516 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1440 

To reduce preterm labor and delivery and the risk of pregnancy-related 

deaths and complications due to pregnancy, and to reduce infant mortality caused by prematurity. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 28, 2011 

Mr. ALEXANDER (for himself, Mr. BENNET, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mrs. HAGAN, 

Mr. LUGAR, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. BEGICH, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. REED, Mr. 

AKAKA, Mr. INOUYE, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. BROWN of Massachusetts, Mr. 

KERRY, Ms. SNOWE, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. COONS, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. 

LANDRIEU, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. TESTER, Mrs. HUTCHISON, Mrs. BOXER, 

and Mrs. SHAHEEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012 

Reported by Mr. HARKIN, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To reduce preterm labor and delivery and the risk of pregnancy-related deaths and complications due to pregnancy, 

and to reduce infant mortality caused by prematurity. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prematurity Research 

3 Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants 

4 Early Reauthorization Act’’ or the ‘‘PREEMIE Reauthor5 ization Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

7 It is the purpose of this Act to— 

8 (1) help reduce preterm birth, associated dis9 abilities of preterm birth, and deaths of babies born 

10 preterm; 

11 (2) expand research into the causes of preterm 

12 birth; and 

13 (3) promote the development, availability, and 

14 use of evidence-based practices of care for pregnant 

15 women at risk of preterm labor or other serious 

16 pregnancy-related complications and for infants born 

17 preterm. 

18 SEC. 3. RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES AT THE NATIONAL IN19 STITUTES OF HEALTH. 

20 Part B of title IV of the Public Health Service Act 

21 (42 U.S.C. 284 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

22 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 409K. EXPANSION AND COORDINATION OF RESEARCH 

2 RELATING TO PRETERM LABOR AND DELIV3 ERY AND INFANT MORTALITY. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 

5 the Director of NIH, shall, subject to the availability of 

6 appropriations, expand, intensify, and coordinate the ac7 tivities of the National Institutes of Health with respect 

8 to research on the causes of preterm labor and delivery, 

9 tools to detect, prevent, or reduce prevalence of preterm 

10 labor and delivery, and the care and treatment of preterm 

11 infants. 

12 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF CLINICAL RESEARCH NET13 WORKS.—There shall be established within the National 

14 Institutes of Health a multi-center clinical program (that 

15 shall be initially established utilizing existing networks) 

16 designed to— 

17 ‘‘(1) investigate problems in clinical obstetrics, 

18 particularly those related to prevention of low birth 

19 weight, prematurity, and medical problems of preg20 nancy; 

21 ‘‘(2) improve the care and outcomes of neo22 nates, especially very-low-birth weight infants; and 

23 ‘‘(3) enhance the understanding of DNA and 

24 proteins as they relate to the underlying processes 

25 that lead to preterm birth to aid in formulating 


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1 more effective interventions to prevent preterm 

2 birth. 

3 ‘‘(c) TRANS-DISCIPLINARY CENTERS FOR PRETERM

4 BIRTH RESEARCH.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of NIH shall, 

6 subject to appropriations made available to carry out 

7 this subsection, award grants and contracts to public 

8 and nonprofit private entities to pay all or part of 

9 the cost of planning, establishing, improving, and 

10 providing basic operating support for trans-discipli11 nary research centers for prematurity. Research sup12 ported under this subsection shall integrate clinical, 

13 public health, basic, and behavioral and social 

14 science disciplines together with bioinformatics, engi15 neering, mathematical, and computer sciences to ad16 dress the causes of preterm labor and delivery col17 laboratively. 

18 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

19 grant or contract under paragraph (1), an entity 

20 shall submit to the Director an application at such 

21 time, in such manner, and containing such informa22 tion as the Director may require, including, if appro23 priate, an assurance that the entity will coordinate 

24 with clinical research networks authorized in sub25 section (b). 


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1 ‘‘(3) REPORT.—The Director of NIH shall in2 clude in the report under section 402A(c) informa3 tion on the activities of the trans-disciplinary re4 search centers for prematurity under this subsection. 

5 ‘‘(d) NATIONAL EDUCATIONAL CAMPAIGN.— 

6 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting 

7 through the Surgeon General of the Public Health 

8 Service and in consultation with the Director of the 

9 Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute on Child 

10 Health and Human Development, shall establish and 

11 implement a national science-based provider and 

12 consumer education campaign on promoting healthy 

13 pregnancies and preventing preterm birth. 

14 ‘‘(2) TARGETING.—The campaign established 

15 under paragraph (1) shall target women of child16 bearing age, high risk populations, ethnic and mi17 nority groups, individuals with a low socioeconomic 

18 status, obstetricians and gynecologists, nurse practi19 tioners, certified nurse-midwives, certified midwives, 

20 and other health care providers.’’. 

21 SEC. 4. RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES AT THE CENTERS FOR 

22 DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION. 

23 (a) EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES.—Section 3 of the 

24 Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for 

25 Mothers who deliver Infants Early Act (42 U.S.C. 247b– 


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1 4f) is amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(b) STUDIES AND ACTIVITIES ON PRETERM

4 BIRTH.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health 

6 and Human Services, acting through the Director of 

7 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 

8 shall, subject to the availability of appropriations— 

9 ‘‘(A) conduct ongoing epidemiological stud10 ies on the clinical, biological, social, environ11 mental, genetic, and behavioral factors relating 

12 to prematurity; 

13 ‘‘(B) conduct activities to improve national 

14 data to facilitate tracking the burden of 

15 preterm birth; 

16 ‘‘(C) develop, implement, and evaluate 

17 novel methods for prevention to better under18 stand the growing problem of late preterm 

19 birth; 

20 ‘‘(D) conduct etiologic and epidemiologic 

21 studies of preterm birth; 

22 ‘‘(E) expand research on racial and ethnic 

23 disparities as they relate to preterm birth; and 


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1 ‘‘(F) conduct ongoing epidemiological stud2 ies on the effectiveness of community based 

3 interventions. 

4 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

5 date of enactment of the PREEMIE Reauthoriza6 tion Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary 

7 of Health and Human Services, acting through the 

8 Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre9 vention, shall submit to the appropriate committees 

10 of Congress reports concerning the progress and any 

11 results of studies conducted under paragraph (1).’’. 

12 (b) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 3(e) of the Pre13 maturity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers 

14 who deliver Infants Early Act (42 U.S.C. 247b–4f(e)) is 

15 amended by striking ‘‘2011’’ and inserting ‘‘2016’’. 

16 SEC. 5. RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES AT THE HEALTH RE17 SOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION. 

18 (a) TELEMEDICINE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT ON

19 HIGH RISK PREGNANCIES.—Section 330I of the Public 

20 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254c–14) is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating subsections (q) through (s) 

22 as subsections (r) through (t), respectively; 

23 (2) by inserting after subsection (p), the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(q) TELEMEDICINE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT ON

2 HIGH RISK PREGNANCIES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall award 

4 grants under this section to eligible entities to estab5 lish demonstration projects for— 

6 ‘‘(A) the provision of preconception, 

7 antepartum, intrapartum, and obstetric services 

8 to high risk women of child bearing age re9 motely by obstetricians and gynecologists, nurse 

10 practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, certified 

11 midwives, or other health care providers using 

12 telehealth; and 

13 ‘‘(B) for the conduct of educational activi14 ties regarding risk factors for preterm birth. 

15 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

16 grant under paragraph (1), an entity shall submit 

17 an application to the Director at such time, in such 

18 manner, and containing such information as the Di19 rector my require.’’; and 

20 (3) in subsection (t) (as so redesignated)— 

21 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

22 the end; 

23 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe24 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

25 (C) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(3) for grants under subsection (q), 

2 $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 through 

3 2016.’’. 

4 (b) PUBLIC AND HEALTH CARE PROVIDER EDU5 CATION.—Section 399Q of the Public Health Service Act 

6 (42 U.S.C. 280g–5) is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (b)— 

8 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking subpara9 graphs (A) through (F) and inserting the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(A) the core risk factors for preterm 

12 labor; 

13 ‘‘(B) medically indicated deliveries before 

14 39 weeks; 

15 ‘‘(C) outcomes for infants born before 39 

16 weeks; 

17 ‘‘(D) risk factors for preterm delivery; 

18 ‘‘(E) the importance of preconception- and 

19 prenatal care; 

20 ‘‘(F) smoking cessation, hypertension, and 

21 weight maintenance; 

22 ‘‘(G) treatments and outcomes for babies 

23 born premature; 


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1 ‘‘(H) the informational needs of families 

2 during the stay of an infant in a neonatal in3 tensive care unit; 

4 ‘‘(I) preventable birth injuries if evidence5 based strategies had been utilized; 

6 ‘‘(J) depression; and 

7 ‘‘(K) the use of progesterone;’’; and 

8 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and by re9 designating paragraphs (3) and (4) as para10 graphs (2) and (3), respectively; 

11 (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub12 section (d) and by inserting after subsection (b) the 

13 following new subsection: 

14 ‘‘(c) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

16 through the Administrator of the Health Resources 

17 and Services Administration and the heads of other 

18 appropriate agencies, shall conduct (and report on) 

19 research studies and demonstration projects that 

20 test maternity care models that are designed to re21 duce the rate of preterm birth. 

22 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—The Secretary may carry out 

23 this subsection through the awarding of grants to el24 igible entities. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

2 grant under this section an entity shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) be— 

4 ‘‘(i) a hospital or hospital systems 

5 that utilizes evidence-based best practices; 

6 or 

7 ‘‘(ii) a public or private nonprofit enti8 ty; and 

9 ‘‘(B) submit to the Secretary an applica10 tion at such time, in such manner, and con11 taining such information as the Secretary may 

12 require. 

13 ‘‘(4) TARGETING.—In awarding grants under 

14 this subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to 

15 projects in geographic areas with a demonstrated 

16 persistent high rate of preterm birth based on data 

17 from the National Center on Health Statistics.’’; and 

18 (3) in subsection (d), as redesignated by para19 graph (2), by striking ‘‘2011’’ and inserting ‘‘2016’’. 

20 SEC. 6. OTHER ACTIVITIES. 

21 (a) ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON INFANT MOR22 TALITY.— 

23 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es24 tablish an advisory committee known as the ‘‘AdviVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:27 Sep 20, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1440.RS S1440

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1 sory Committee on Infant Mortality’’ (referred to in 

2 this section as the ‘‘Advisory Committee’’). 

3 (2) DUTIES.—The Advisory Committee shall 

4 provide advice and recommendations to the Sec5 retary concerning the following activities: 

6 (A) Programs of the Department of Health 

7 and Human Services that are directed at reduc8 ing infant mortality and improving the health 

9 status of pregnant women and infants. 

10 (B) Factors affecting the continuum of 

11 care with respect to maternal and child health 

12 care, including outcomes following childbirth 

13 and specifically preterm birth. 

14 (C) Strategies to coordinate the various 

15 Federal, State, local, and private programs and 

16 efforts that are designed to deal with the health 

17 and social problems impacting infant mortality. 

18 (D) Implementation of the Healthy Start 

19 program under section 330H of the Public 

20 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254c–8) and 

21 Healthy People 2020 infant mortality objec22 tives. 

23 (E) Strategies to promote the collection of 

24 improved linked maternal and infant perinatal 

25 data. 


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1 (F) Strategies to reduce preterm birth 

2 rates through research, programs, and edu3 cation. 

4 (3) PLAN FOR HHS PRETERM BIRTH ACTIVI5 TIES.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enact6 ment of this section, the Advisory Committee shall 

7 develop a plan for conducting and supporting re8 search education and programs on preterm birth 

9 through the Department of Health and Human 

10 Services and shall periodically review and revise the 

11 plan. The plan shall— 

12 (A) provide for a broad range of research 

13 and educational activities relating to biomedical, 

14 epidemiological, psychosocial, translational, and 

15 clinical activities, including studies on racial 

16 and ethnic disparities in preterm birth rates; 

17 (B) identify priorities among the programs 

18 and activities of the Department of Health and 

19 Human Services regarding preterm birth; and 

20 (C) reflect input from a broad range of sci21 entists, patients, and advocacy groups. 

22 (4) MEMBERSHIP.—The Secretary shall ensure 

23 that the membership of the Advisory Committee in24 cludes the following: 


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1 (A) Representatives provided for in the 

2 original charter of the Advisory Committee. 

3 (B) A representative of the National Cen4 ter for Health Statistics. 

5 (b) PATIENT SAFETY STUDY AND REPORT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall des7 ignate an appropriate agency within the Department 

8 of Health and Human Services to conduct a study 

9 on hospital readmissions of preterm infants. Find10 ings and recommendations resulting from such study 

11 shall be based on data collected to address the fol12 lowing questions and such other related questions 

13 which the Secretary and such designated agency 

14 deem important: 

15 (A) By State and by health care system, 

16 what is the number and rate of inpatient read17 mission for infants born preterm? 

18 (B) What are the leading diagnoses at the 

19 time of inpatient readmission for preterm in20 fants? 

21 (C) What is the average cost of treatment 

22 for preterm infant readmissions by diagnosis, 

23 by health care system, and by State? 


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1 (D) What percentage of readmissions are 

2 preventable if evidence-based strategies had 

3 been utilized? 

4 (E) What percentage of treatment cost is 

5 attributable to preventable readmissions? 

6 (F) What is the source of health insurance 

7 coverage for preterm infants who are re8 admitted, such as through publicly funded pro9 grams (including the Medicaid program under 

10 title XIX of the Social Security Act and the 

11 Children’s Health Insurance Program under 

12 title XXI of such Act), private health insurance, 

13 and self payments of uninsured individuals? 

14 (G) What evidence-based interventions are 

15 effective in preventing readmission of preterm 

16 infants, including measuring and reporting on 

17 quality of care and outcomes? 

18 (2) REPORT TO SECRETARY AND CONGRESS.— 

19 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enact20 ment of this Act, the agency designated under para21 graph (1) shall submit to the Secretary and to Con22 gress a report containing the findings and rec23 ommendations resulting from the study conducted 

24 under such subparagraph, including recommenda25 tions for hospital discharge and follow-up procedures 


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1 designed to reduce rates of preventable hospital re2 admissions for preterm infants. 

3 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

5 this subsection, $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

6 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prematurity Research 

8 Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants 

9 Early Reauthorization Act’’ or the ‘‘PREEMIE Reauthor10 ization Act’’. 

11 SEC. 2. RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES AT THE NATIONAL IN12 STITUTES OF HEALTH. 

13 The Secretary of Health and Human Services may, 

14 subject to the availability of appropriations, expand, inten15 sify, and coordinate the activities of the National Institutes 

16 of Health with respect to research, including 

17 transdisciplinary research, on the causes of preterm labor 

18 and delivery, tools to detect, prevent, or reduce prevalence 

19 of preterm labor and delivery, and the care and treatment 

20 of preterm infants. Such activities may include— 

21 (1) investigating problems in clinical obstetrics, 

22 particularly those related to prevention of low birth 

23 weight, prematurity, and medical problems of preg24 nancy; 


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1 (2) improving the care and outcomes of neonates, 

2 especially very-low-birth weight infants; and 

3 (3) enhancing the understanding of genetics as 

4 they relate to the underlying processes that lead to 

5 preterm birth to aid in formulating more effective 

6 interventions to prevent preterm birth. 

7 SEC. 3. RESEARCH AND ACTIVITIES AT THE CENTERS FOR 

8 DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION. 

9 (a) EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES.—Section 3 of the 

10 Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Moth11 ers who deliver Infants Early Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-4f) is 

12 amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(b) STUDIES AND ACTIVITIES ON PRETERM BIRTH.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

16 Human Services, acting through the Director of the 

17 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall, 

18 subject to the availability of appropriations— 

19 ‘‘(A) conduct epidemiological studies on the 

20 clinical, biological, social, environmental, ge21 netic, and behavioral factors relating to pre22 maturity, as appropriate; 

23 ‘‘(B) conduct activities to improve national 

24 data to facilitate tracking the burden of preterm 

25 birth; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) continue efforts to prevent preterm 

2 birth, including late preterm birth, through the 

3 identification of opportunities for prevention 

4 and the assessment of the impact of such efforts. 

5 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

6 date of enactment of the PREEMIE Reauthorization 

7 Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary of 

8 Health and Human Services, acting through the Di9 rector of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven10 tion, shall submit to the appropriate committees of 

11 Congress reports concerning the progress and any re12 sults of studies conducted under paragraph (1).’’. 

13 (b) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 3(e) of the Pre14 maturity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers 

15 who deliver Infants Early Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-4f(e)) is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘2011’’ and inserting ‘‘2017’’. 

17 SEC. 4. ACTIVITIES AT THE HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERV18 ICES ADMINISTRATION. 

19 (a) TELEMEDICINE AND HIGH RISK PREGNANCIES.— 

20 Section 330I(i)(1)(B) of the Public Health Service Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 254c-14(i)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘or case 

22 management services’’ and inserting ‘‘case management 

23 services, or prenatal care for high-risk pregnancies’’; 


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1 (b) PUBLIC AND HEALTH CARE PROVIDER EDU2 CATION.—Section 399Q of the Public Health Service Act 

3 (42 U.S.C. 280g-5) is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (b)— 

5 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking subpara6 graphs (A) through (F) and inserting the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(A) the core risk factors for preterm labor 

9 and delivery; 

10 ‘‘(B) medically indicated deliveries before 

11 full term; 

12 ‘‘(C) the importance of preconception and 

13 prenatal care, including— 

14 ‘‘(i) smoking cessation; 

15 ‘‘(ii) weight maintenance and good nu16 trition, including folic acid; 

17 ‘‘(iii) the screening for and the treat18 ment of infections; and 

19 ‘‘(iv) stress management; 

20 ‘‘(D) treatments and outcomes for pre21 mature infants, including late preterm infants; 

22 ‘‘(E) the informational needs of families 

23 during the stay of an infant in a neonatal inten24 sive care unit; and 


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1 ‘‘(F) utilization of evidence-based strategies 

2 to prevent birth injuries;’’; and 

3 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting 

4 the following: 

5 ‘‘(2) programs to increase the availability, 

6 awareness, and use of pregnancy and post-term infor7 mation services that provide evidence-based, clinical 

8 information through counselors, community outreach 

9 efforts, electronic or telephonic communication, or 

10 other appropriate means regarding causes associated 

11 with prematurity, birth defects, or health risks to a 

12 post-term infant;’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘2011’’ and in14 serting ‘‘2017’’. 

15 SEC. 5. OTHER ACTIVITIES. 

16 (a) INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COUNCIL ON PRE17 MATURITY AND LOW BIRTHWEIGHT.—The Prematurity Re18 search Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver 

19 Infants Early Act is amended by striking section 5 (42 

20 U.S.C. 247b-4g). 

21 (b) ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON INFANT MORTALITY.— 

22 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Health 

23 and Human Services (referred to in this section as 

24 the ‘‘Secretary’’) may establish an advisory committee 

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1 tality’’ (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Advisory 

2 Committee’’). 

3 (2) DUTIES.—The Advisory Committee shall pro4 vide advice and recommendations to the Secretary 

5 concerning the following activities: 

6 (A) Programs of the Department of Health 

7 and Human Services that are directed at reduc8 ing infant mortality and improving the health 

9 status of pregnant women and infants. 

10 (B) Strategies to coordinate the various 

11 Federal programs and activities with State, 

12 local, and private programs and efforts that ad13 dress factors that affect infant mortality. 

14 (C) Implementation of the Healthy Start 

15 program under section 330H of the Public 

16 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254c–8) and 

17 Healthy People 2020 infant mortality objectives. 

18 (D) Strategies to reduce preterm birth rates 

19 through research, programs, and education. 

20 (3) PLAN FOR HHS PRETERM BIRTH ACTIVI21 TIES.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enact22 ment of this section, the Advisory Committee (or an 

23 existing advisory committee designated by the Sec24 retary) shall develop a plan for conducting and sup25 porting research, education, and programs on preterm 


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1 birth through the Department of Health and Human 

2 Services and shall periodically review and revise the 

3 plan, as appropriate. The plan shall— 

4 (A) examine research and educational ac5 tivities that receive Federal funding in order to 

6 enable the plan to provide informed rec7 ommendations to reduce preterm birth and ad8 dress racial and ethnic disparities in preterm 

9 birth rates; 

10 (B) identify research gaps and opportuni11 ties to implement evidence-based strategies to re12 duce preterm birth rates among the programs 

13 and activities of the Department of Health and 

14 Human Services regarding preterm birth, in15 cluding opportunities to minimize duplication; 

16 and 

17 (C) reflect input from a broad range of sci18 entists, patients, and advocacy groups, as appro19 priate. 

20 (4) MEMBERSHIP.—The Secretary shall ensure 

21 that the membership of the Advisory Committee in22 cludes the following: 

23 (A) Representatives provided for in the 

24 original charter of the Advisory Committee. 


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1 (B) A representative of the National Center 

2 for Health Statistics. 

3 (c) PATIENT SAFETY STUDIES AND REPORT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall designate 

5 an appropriate agency within the Department of 

6 Health and Human Services to coordinate existing 

7 studies on hospital readmissions of preterm infants. 

8 (2) REPORT TO SECRETARY AND CONGRESS.— 

9 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

10 of this Act, the agency designated under paragraph 

11 (1) shall submit to the Secretary and to Congress a 

12 report containing the findings and recommendations 

13 resulting from the studies coordinated under such 

14 paragraph, including recommendations for hospital 

15 discharge and follow-up procedures designed to reduce 

16 rates of preventable hospital readmissions for preterm 

17 infants. 


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Calendar No. 516 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1440 

A BILL 

To reduce preterm labor and delivery and the risk 

caused by prematurity. due to pregnancy, and to reduce infant mortality of pregnancy-related deaths and complications 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012 

Reported with an amendment 


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