‘‘(1) be a State or a major metropolitan area 
(as defined by the Secretary); and 
‘‘(2) submit to the Secretary an application at 
such time, in such manner, and containing such in-
formation as the Secretary may require, including— 
‘‘(A) an assurance that the applicant will 
implement the standardized surveillance pro-
tocol developed under subsection (c); and 
‘‘(B) a description of the infrastructure of 
existing surveillance systems in the State or 
major metropolitan area, as applicable. 
‘‘(c) SURVEILLANCE
PROTOCOL.—The Secretary, 
acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, shall— 
‘‘(1) provide for the continued development and 
dissemination of a standard protocol for stillbirth 
data collection and surveillance, in consultation with 
representatives of health and advocacy organizations, 
State and local governments, and other interested 
entities determined appropriate by the Secretary; 
‘‘(2) monitor trends and identify potential risk 
factors for further study using existing sources of 
surveillance data and expanded sources of data from 
targeted surveillance efforts, and methods for the 
evaluation of stillbirth prevention efforts; and 
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‘‘(3) develop and evaluate methods to link exist-
ing data to provide more complete information for 
research into the causes and conditions associated 
with stillbirth. 
‘‘(d) POSTMORTEM EVALUATION AND DATA COLLEC-
TION.—The Secretary, acting through the Director of the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in con-
sultation with physicians, nurses, pathologists, geneticists, 
parents, and other groups determined necessary by the Di-
rector, shall develop guidelines for increasing the perform-
ance and data collection of postmortem stillbirth evalua-
tion, including conducting and reimbursing autopsies, pla-
cental histopathology, and cytogenetic testing. The guide-
lines should take into account cultural competency issues 
related to postmortem stillbirth evaluation. 
‘‘(e) PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES 
RELATED
TO
STILLBIRTH.—The 
Secretary, 
acting 
through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention, shall— 
‘‘(1) develop behavioral surveys for women ex-
periencing stillbirth, using existing State-based in-
frastructure for pregnancy-related information gath-
ering; and 
‘‘(2) increase the technical assistance provided 
to States, Indian tribes, territories, and local com-
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munities to enhance capacity for improved investiga-
tion of medical and social factors surrounding still-
birth events. 
‘‘(f) PUBLIC EDUCATION
AND PREVENTION PRO-
GRAMS.—The Secretary, acting through the Director of 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in 
consultation with health care providers, public health or-
ganizations, maternal and child health programs, parents, 
and other groups deemed necessary by the Director, shall 
directly or through grants, cooperative agreements, or con-
tracts to eligible entities, develop and conduct evidence- 
based public education and prevention programs aimed at 
reducing the occurrence of stillbirth overall and addressing 
the racial and ethnic disparities in its occurrence, includ-
ing— 
‘‘(1) public education programs, services, and 
demonstrations which are designed to increase gen-
eral awareness of stillbirths; and 
‘‘(2) the development of tools for the education 
of health professionals and women concerning the 
known risk factors for stillbirth, promotion of fetal 
movement awareness, and the importance of early 
and regular prenatal care to monitor the health and 
development of the fetus up to and during delivery. 
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‘‘(g) TASK FORCE.—The Secretary, in consultation 
with the Director of the National Institutes of Health, the 
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion, and health care providers, researchers, parents, and 
other groups deemed necessary by the Directors, shall es-
tablish a task force to develop a national research plan 
to determine the causes of, and how to prevent, stillbirth. 
‘‘(h) GRANTS FOR SUPPORT SERVICES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 
through the Administrator of the Health Resources 
and Services Administration, shall award grants to 
national organizations, State and local health de-
partments, and community-based organizations, for 
the provisions of support services to families who 
have experienced stillbirth. 
‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a 
grant under subsection (a), an entity shall submit to 
the Secretary an application at such time, in such 
manner, and containing such information as the Sec-
retary may require. 
‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts received under 
a grant awarded under subsection (a) may be used 
to provide grief counseling, education, home visits, 
24-hour hotlines, and support groups for families 
who have experienced stillbirth. 
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‘‘(4) PREFERENCE.—In awarding grants under 
subsection (a), the Secretary shall give preference to 
applicants that are community-based organizations 
that have a proven history of providing effective di-
rect support services and interventions related to 
stillbirths and can demonstrate experience through 
collaborations and partnerships for delivering serv-
ices throughout a State or region. 
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘State’ has the meaning given to 
such term in section 2, except that such term in-
cludes tribes and tribal organizations (as such terms 
are defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Deter-
mination and Education Assistance Act). 
‘‘(2) The term ‘stillbirth’ means a spontaneous, 
not induced, pregnancy loss 20 weeks or later after 
gestation, or if the age of the fetus is not known, 
then a fetus weighing 350 grams or more. 
‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, 
$3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2012 through 2016.’’. 
SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 
Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease 
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Control and Prevention and in consultation with the Di-
rector of the National Institutes of Health and the Admin-
istrator of the Health Resources and Services Administra-
tion, shall submit to Congress a report describing the 
progress made in implementing this Act (and the amend-
ments made by this Act). 
Æ 
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