I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3588
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish health 
empowerment zone programs in communities that disproportionately ex-
perience disparities in health status and health care, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 21, 2003
Mrs. CHRISTENSEN (for herself, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. CUMMINGS, Ms. 
JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. WATT, Ms. WATSON, Ms. LEE, Mr. 
HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Ms. MAJETTE, Ms. 
KILPATRICK, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. MEEK of Florida, Ms. WATERS, Ms. 
EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. WYNN, Ms. CORRINE BROWN 
of Florida, Mr. JEFFERSON, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. CARSON of Indiana, and 
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 
establish health empowerment zone programs in commu-
nities that disproportionately experience disparities in 
health status and health care, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Health Empowerment 
Zone Act of 2003’’.
SEC. 2. HEALTH EMPOWERMENT ZONES. 
(a) HEALTH EMPOWERMENT ZONE PROGRAMS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, acting through the Administrator 
of the Health Resources and Services Administration 
and the Director of the Office of Minority Health, 
and in cooperation with the Director of the Office of 
Community Services and the Director of the Na-
tional Center for Minority Health and Health Dis-
parities—
(A) shall designate health empowerment 
zones in accordance with paragraph (2); and 
(B) shall make grants in accordance with 
paragraph (3). 
(2) DESIGNATION OF HEALTH EMPOWERMENT 
ZONES.—The Secretary may designate a community 
as a health empowerment zone if—
(A) a community partnership seeking a 
grant under this section requests that the com-
munity be designated as a health empowerment 
zone; and 
(B) the community partnership dem-
onstrates, to the Secretary’s satisfaction, that 
the community is a community of color that ex-
periences disproportionate disparities in health 
status and health care.
powerment zone that is located in a territory or pos-
session of the United States. 
(6) APPLICATION.—To seek the designation of 
a community as a health empowerment zone and to 
obtain a grant under this section, a community part-
nership shall submit to the Secretary an application 
in such form and in such manner as the Secretary 
may require. An application under this paragraph 
shall—
(A) demonstrate that the community to be 
served is a community of color that experiences 
disproportionate disparities in health status and 
health care; 
(B) set forth a strategic plan for the pro-
posed health empowerment zone program, by—
(i) describing the coordinated health, 
economic, human, community, and physical 
development plan and related activities 
proposed for the community involved; 
(ii) describing the inclusion of the 
community involved as a full partner in the 
process of developing, implementing, moni-
toring, and evaluating the strategic plan 
and the extent to which local institutions
and organizations have contributed to the 
planning process; 
(iii) identifying the projected amount 
of Federal, State, local, and private re-
sources that will be available in the area 
and the private and public community 
partnerships to be used (including any par-
ticipation by or cooperation with univer-
sities, colleges, foundations, nonprofit orga-
nizations, medical centers, hospitals, health 
clinics, school districts, or other private 
and public entities); 
(iv) identifying the funding requested 
under any Federal program in support of 
the proposed health, economic, human, 
community, and physical development, and 
related activities; 
(v) identifying baselines, methods, 
health outcomes, and benchmarks for 
measuring the success of carrying out the 
strategic plan; 
(vi) demonstrating the ability to effec-
tively reach and service the targeted under-
served minority community populations in
a culturally appropriate and linguistically 
responsive manner; 
(vii) demonstrating a capacity and in-
frastructure to provide long-term commu-
nity response that is culturally appropriate 
and linguistically responsive to a commu-
nity of color that experiences dispropor-
tionate disparities in health status and 
health care; and 
(viii) identifying the individuals who 
have agreed to serve as members of a 
health empowerment zone coordinating 
committee for the community involved; and 
(C) include such other information as the 
Secretary may require. 
(7) PREFERENCE.—In awarding grants under 
this subsection, the Secretary shall give preference 
to proposals from indigenous community entities 
that have an expertise in providing culturally appro-
priate and linguistically responsive services to com-
munities of color that experience disproportionate 
disparities in health status and health care. 
(b) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR HEALTH EMPOWER-
MENT
ZONE
GRANT
PROGRAMS.—The Secretary of 
Health and Human Services, the Administrator of the
Small Business Administration, the Secretary of Agri-
culture, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of 
Labor, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop-
ment shall each—
(1) where appropriate, provide entity-specific 
technical assistance and evidence-based strategies to 
communities of color that experience dispropor-
tionate disparities in health status and health care 
to further the purposes of a health empowerment 
zone program described in subsection (a)(5); 
(2) identify all programs administered by the 
Department of Health and Human Services, the 
Small Business Administration, the Department of 
Agriculture, the Department of Education, the De-
partment of Labor, and the Department of Housing 
and Urban Development, respectively, that may be 
used to further the purposes of a health empower-
ment zone program described in subsection (a)(5); 
and 
(3) in administering any program identified 
under paragraph (2), give priority to any individual 
or entity located in a community served by a health 
empowerment zone program under subsection (a) if 
such priority would further the purposes of the
health empowerment zone program described in sub-
section (a)(5). 
(c) HEALTH EMPOWERMENT ZONE COORDINATING 
COMMITTEE.—
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—For each health em-
powerment zone program established with a grant 
under subsection (a), the Secretary, acting through 
the Director of the Office of Minority Health and 
the Administrator of the Health Resources and Serv-
ices Administration, shall establish a health em-
powerment zone coordinating committee. 
(2) DUTIES.—Each coordinating committee es-
tablished, in coordination with the Director of the 
Office of Minority Health and the Administrator of 
the Health Resources and Services Administration, 
shall provide technical assistance and evidence-based 
strategies to the grant recipient involved, including 
providing guidance on research, strategies, health 
outcomes, program goals, management, implementa-
tion, monitoring, assessment, and evaluation proc-
esses. 
(3) MEMBERSHIP.—
(A) APPOINTMENT.—The Director of the 
Office of Minority Health and the Adminis-
trator of the Health Resources and Services Ad-
ministration, in consultation with the respective 
grant recipient, shall appoint the members of 
each coordinating committee. 
(B) COMPOSITION.—The Director of the 
Office of Minority Health and the Adminis-
trator of the Health Resources and Services Ad-
ministration shall ensure that each coordinating 
committee—
(i) has not more than 20 members; 
(ii) includes individuals from commu-
nities of color that experience dispropor-
tionate disparities in health status and 
health care; 
(iii) includes community leaders and 
leaders of community-based organizations; 
(iv) includes representatives of aca-
demia and lay and professional organiza-
tions and associations including those hav-
ing expertise in medicine, technical, social 
and behavioral science, health policy, advo-
cacy, cultural and linguistic competency, 
research management, and organization; 
and 
(v) represents a reasonable cross-sec-
tion of knowledge, views, and application
of expertise on societal, ethical, behavioral, 
educational, policy, legal, cultural, lin-
guistic, and workforce issues related to 
eliminating disparities in health and health 
care. 
(C) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Director of 
the Office of Minority Health and the Adminis-
trator of the Health Resources and Services Ad-
ministration shall ensure that the members of 
each coordinating committee meet the following: 
(i) No member is employed by the 
Federal Government. 
(ii) Each member has appropriate ex-
perience, including experience in the areas 
of community development, cultural and 
linguistic competency, reducing and elimi-
nating racial and ethnic disparities in 
health and health care, or minority health. 
(iii) A majority of the members reside 
in the health empowerment zone involved. 
(D) SELECTION.—In selecting individuals 
to serve on a coordinating committee, the Di-
rector of the Office of Minority Health and the 
Administrator of the Health Resources and 
Services Administration shall give due consider-
sultation with the Director of the Office of Minority 
Health and the Administrator of the Health Re-
sources and Services Administration. 
(6) REPORT.—Each coordinating committee 
shall transmit to the Congress an annual report 
that, with respect to the health empowerment zone 
program involved, includes the following: 
(A) A review of the program’s effectiveness 
in achieving stated goals and outcomes, and 
overcoming challenges. 
(B) A review of the program’s manage-
ment and coordination of the entities involved. 
(C) A review of the activities in the pro-
gram’s portfolio and components. 
(D) An identification of policy issues raised 
by the program. 
(E) An assessment of program’s results in-
cluding that of capacity, infrastructure, number 
of underserved minority communities reached 
and retained in the effort in a defined time 
frame. 
(F) Recommendations for new program 
goals, research areas, enhanced approaches, 
community partnerships, coordination and man-
agement mechanisms, and projects to be estab-
lished to achieve the program’s stated goals, to 
improve outcomes, assessments, monitoring, 
and evaluation. 
(G) A review of the degree of minority en-
tities participation in the program, and an iden-
tification of a strategy to increase such partici-
pation. 
(H) Any other reviews or recommendations 
determined to be appropriate by the coordi-
nating committee. 
(d) REPORT.—The Director of the Office of Minority 
Health and the Administrator of the Health Resources 
and Services Administration shall submit a joint annual 
report to the appropriate committees of the Congress on 
the results of the implementation of programs under this 
section. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) COORDINATING
COMMITTEE.—The term 
‘‘coordinating committee’’ means a health empower-
ment zone coordinating committee established under 
this section. 
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$100,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, and such sums as may 
be necessary for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2010.
Æ