I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7565 
To continue to fund the IMPROVE Initiative through the Eunice Kennedy 
Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 21, 2022 
Ms. UNDERWOOD (for herself and Ms. HERRERA BEUTLER) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To continue to fund the IMPROVE Initiative through the 
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child 
Health and Human Development, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘NIH Implementing 
a Maternal health and PRegnancy Outcomes Vision for 
Everyone Act of 2022’’ or the ‘‘NIH IMPROVE Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. IMPROVE INITIATIVE. 
Subpart 7 of part C of title IV of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 281 et seq.) is amended by adding 
at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 452H. IMPROVE INITIATIVE. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Institute 
may continue to carry out the IMPROVE initiative (here-
after in this section referred to as the ‘Initiative’) through 
the Institute for the following: 
‘‘(1) Advancing research to— 
‘‘(A) reduce preventable causes of maternal 
mortality and severe maternal morbidity; 
‘‘(B) reduce racial, ethnic, and socio-
economic disparities in maternal health out-
comes; and 
‘‘(C) improve health for pregnant and 
postpartum individuals before, during, and after 
pregnancy. 
‘‘(2) Using an integrated approach to under-
stand the biological, behavioral, sociocultural, and 
structural factors that affect maternal mortality and 
severe maternal morbidity by building an evidence 
base for improved care and outcomes in specific re-
gions of the United States. 
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‘‘(3) Targeting health disparities associated 
with maternal mortality and severe maternal mor-
bidity by— 
‘‘(A) implementing and evaluating commu-
nity-based interventions for disproportionately 
affected individuals; and 
‘‘(B) identifying risk factors and the un-
derlying biological mechanisms associated with 
leading causes of maternal mortality and severe 
maternal morbidity in the United States, in-
cluding cardiovascular disease, infection and 
immunity, and mental health. 
‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Director of the Insti-
tute may award grants or enter into contracts, cooperative 
agreements, or other transactions to carry out subsection 
(a), including with researchers from racial and ethnic mi-
nority groups (as defined in section 1707(g)(1)). 
‘‘(c) APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $30,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027.’’. 
Æ 
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