MODERN WIC Act of 2023

Subjects: Agriculture and Food


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 984 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 984

 To amend the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to permit video or telephone 
  certifications under the special supplemental nutrition program for 
         women, infants, and children, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 27, 2023

Mrs. Gillibrand (for herself and Mr. Marshall) introduced the following 
      bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                  Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to permit video or telephone 
  certifications under the special supplemental nutrition program for 
         women, infants, and children, 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 ``More Options to Develop and Enhance 
Remote Nutrition in WIC Act of 2023'' or the ``MODERN WIC Act of 
2023''.

SEC. 2. REDEFINING PRESENCE AT CERTIFICATION.

    (a) In General.--Section 17(d)(3) of the Child Nutrition Act of 
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(d)(3)) is amended by striking subparagraph (C) and 
inserting the following:
                    ``(C) Presence for certain determinations and 
                evaluations.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Each individual seeking 
                        certification, recertification, or a 
                        nutritional risk evaluation for participation 
                        in the program authorized under this section 
                        shall be provided an appointment that is, at 
                        the option of the individual, through any of 
                        the following formats:
                                    ``(I) In person.
                                    ``(II) By telephone.
                                    ``(III) Through video technology 
                                that permits 2-way, real-time 
                                interactive communications.
                                    ``(IV) Through other formats that 
                                permit 2-way, real-time interactive 
                                communications, as determined by the 
                                Secretary.
                            ``(ii) ADA compliance.--Any format made 
                        available for an appointment under clause (i) 
                        shall be accessible to an individual in 
                        accordance with the Americans with Disabilities 
                        Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) and 
                        section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 
                        (29 U.S.C. 794).
                            ``(iii) Nutritional risk evaluations for 
                        remote certification.--If an individual 
                        certifies for participation in the program 
                        under clause (i) through a format other than 
                        in-person, the State agency shall--
                                    ``(I) plan to collect the 
                                anthropometric data necessary to 
                                evaluate the nutritional risk of that 
                                individual within 30 days of the 
                                appointment; and
                                    ``(II) collect such data not later 
                                than 90 days after the appointment.
                            ``(iv) Interim eligibility for nutritional 
                        risk.--
                                    ``(I) In general.--A State agency 
                                may--
                                            ``(aa) consider an 
                                        applicant who meets the income 
                                        eligibility standards under 
                                        this section to be temporarily 
                                        eligible on an interim basis to 
                                        participate in the program 
                                        authorized under this section; 
                                        and
                                            ``(bb) temporarily certify 
                                        that individual for 
                                        participation in the program 
                                        immediately, without delaying 
                                        temporary certification until a 
                                        nutritional risk evaluation is 
                                        carried out.
                                    ``(II) Timing for nutritional risk 
                                evaluation.--A nutritional risk 
                                evaluation for an individual 
                                temporarily certified pursuant to 
                                subclause (I) shall be completed not 
                                later than 90 days after the date of 
                                temporary certification of the 
                                individual.
                                    ``(III) Termination of temporary 
                                certification.--The temporary 
                                certification of an individual 
                                certified pursuant to subclause (I) 
                                shall terminate on the earliest of--
                                            ``(aa) 91 days after the 
                                        date of temporary certification 
                                        if the State agency does not 
                                        collect data on the individual 
                                        pursuant to clause (iii); and
                                            ``(bb) the date of a 
                                        determination by the State 
                                        agency that the individual does 
                                        not meet the nutritional risk 
                                        criteria.''.
    (b) Technical Amendment.--Section 17(d)(3) of the Child Nutrition 
Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(d)(3)) is amended by conforming the margin 
of subparagraph (B) to the margin of subparagraph (C).

SEC. 3. REMOTE BENEFIT ISSUANCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 17(f)(6)(B) of the Child Nutrition Act of 
1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786(f)(6)(B)) is amended--
            (1) in the third sentence--
                    (A) by striking ``vouchers by mail'' and inserting 
                ``food instruments by mail, remote issuance, or other 
                means''; and
                    (B) by striking ``The Secretary'' and inserting the 
                following:
                            ``(iii) Disapproval of state plan.--The 
                        Secretary'';
            (2) in the second sentence--
                    (A) by striking ``vouchers by mail in its plan'' 
                and inserting ``food instruments by mail, remote 
                issuance, or other means in the State plan''; and
                    (B) by striking ``The State'' and inserting the 
                following:
                            ``(ii) State plan.--The State''; and
            (3) by striking ``(B) State agencies'' and all that follows 
        through ``to obtain vouchers.'' and inserting the following:
                    ``(B) Delivery of food instruments.--
                            ``(i) In general.--State agencies may 
                        provide for the delivery of food instruments, 
                        including electronic benefit transfer cards, to 
                        any participant through means that do not 
                        require the participant to travel to the local 
                        agency to obtain the food instruments, such as 
                        through mailing or remote issuance.''.
    (b) Regulations.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall revise section 
246.12(r) of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, by striking 
paragraph (4).

SEC. 4. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the Committee 
on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee 
on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives a report on the 
use of remote technologies under the special supplemental nutrition 
program for women, infants, and children established by section 17 of 
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786) (referred to in this 
section as the ``program'').
    (b) Content of Report.--The report submitted under subsection (a) 
shall include a description of--
            (1) the use of remote technologies and other digital tools, 
        including video, telephone, and online platforms--
                    (A) to certify eligible individuals for program 
                services; and
                    (B) to provide nutrition education and 
                breastfeeding support to program participants;
            (2) the impact of remote technologies, including video, 
        telephone, and online platforms, on certifications, 
        appointments, and participant satisfaction under the program; 
        and
            (3) best practices--
                    (A) to certify program participants for program 
                services using remote technologies;
                    (B) to incorporate the use of digital tools into 
                the program certification process;
                    (C) to integrate nutrition education and 
                breastfeeding support services for program participants 
                into remote technologies and platforms; and
                    (D) to securely manage program participant data.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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