Hospital Adoption Education Act of 2023

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and nationally disseminate accurate, relevant, and accessible resources to promote understanding about sensitivities regarding adoption in the health care industry, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Hospital Adoption Education Act of 2023 2. Findings The Congress finds the following: (1) 24 percent of Americans say that they have considered adopting a child. (2) 81 percent of birth parents report that easy access to objective information is important to them when making the decision to choose adoption. (3) 93 percent of Americans consider hospitals and health care facilities to be trustworthy sources of information about adoption. (4) 98.2 percent of nurses have no professional development in the sensitivities around adoption. (5) Only 4 percent of women with unintended pregnancies place their children through adoption. 3. Development and dissemination of adoption resources (a) In general The Secretary of Health and Human Services— (1) shall develop and nationally disseminate accurate, relevant, and accessible resources to promote understanding about— (A) the sensitivities regarding adoption in the health care industry; and (B) best practices when interacting with prospective birth mothers and adoptive families; and (2) in carrying out paragraph (1)— (A) shall include digital resources; and (B) may include other types of resources, such as print resources. (b) Online adoption resources for health care workers The Secretary shall maintain on the public website of the Administration for Children and Families a webpage on adoption resources for health care workers to improve the awareness and understanding of such workers regarding adoption. (c) Development process (1) Committee The Secretary shall develop the resources required by subsections (a) and (b) through a committee of adoption experts. (2) Membership The membership of the committee referred to in paragraph (1) shall include— (A) representatives of organizations involved in adoption education; (B) maternal health experts; (C) child welfare experts; (D) licensed social workers; (E) hospital case managers; and (F) adoption attorneys. 4. Education and professional development for care providers regarding patient care for families pursuing adoption, including prospective birth mothers and potential adoptive families (a) In general The Secretary, acting through the Administration for Children and Families, directly or through grants or contracts in accordance with subsection (b), shall— (1) provide to care providers at hospitals and birthing centers education and professional development regarding patient care for families pursuing adoption, including prospective birth mothers and potential adoptive families; and (2) provide consultation services to hospitals and birthing centers employing care providers on standardized policies, guidelines, and procedures regarding such education and professional development for such care providers (b) Grants or contracts If the Secretary chooses to provide education, professional development, or consultation services under subsection (a) through the award of a grant or contract, the following provisions shall apply: (1) Eligibility To be eligible for such an award, an entity— (A) shall be a health care-based education organization that focuses on adoption; and (B) shall not— (i) be a child-placing agency; or (ii) provide or refer for abortions. (2) Application To seek such an award, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information and assurances as the Secretary may require. (3) Period The period of such an award shall not exceed 3 fiscal years. (4) Reports As a condition on receipt of such an award, an eligible entity shall agree to submit to the Secretary each fiscal year a report on the activities carried out through the award. Each such report shall include such information as the Secretary determines is necessary to provide an accurate description of such activities. (5) Supplement not supplant Activities carried out using funds made available through such an award shall supplement, and not supplant, activities carried out using other funds made available from the Federal Government or other sources. (c) Technical assistance; coordination The Secretary shall— (1) provide technical assistance to eligible entities regarding activities carried out through an award under this section; and (2) as appropriate, coordinate the provision of education, professional development, and consultation services under subsection (a) with other adoption-related research, professional development, services, and assistance activities carried out by the Department of Health and Human Services. (d) Evaluation (1) In general The Secretary shall evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of the activities carried out (directly or through grants or contracts) under this section, including by calculating— (A) the number of hospitals and birthing centers that implement adoption-sensitive programming and education and professional development as a result of the activities under this section; and (B) the number of care providers who receive adoption education or professional development as a result of the activities under this section. (2) Report to Congress Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall complete the evaluation under paragraph (1) and submit to the Congress a report that contains the results of such evaluation, including the calculations under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1). 5. Definitions In this Act: (1) The term birth mother (2) The term care provider (3) The term child-placing agency (4) The term potential adoptive family (5) The term Secretary 6. Authorization of appropriations To carry out this Act, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services $5,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2023 through 2026.

Summary: Hospital Adoption Education Act of 2023 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop resources to promote the understanding of adoption in the health care industry. Specifically, HHS must develop and disseminate digital resources about adoption for the health care industry, including best practices for interacting with prospective birth mothers and adoptive families. In addition, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) must maintain resources on its website for health care workers to improve their awareness and understanding of adoption. The ACF must also provide professional development (and related consultation services) about families pursuing adoption for care providers at hospitals and birthing centers. The ACF may carry out these activities directly or through grants or contracts with education organizations that are health care-based and focused on adoption. However, the ACF may not award grants to or enter contracts with (1) agencies that place newborn children for adoption or in foster care, or (2) organizations that provide abortion services.