NEWBORN Act
Bill: H.R.79 | Sponsor: Rep. Cohen, Steve (D-TN)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Nationally Enhancing the Well-being of Babies through Outreach and Research Now Act or the NEWBORN Act
This bill establishes a pilot program through which the Health Resources and Services Administration must award grants to territorial, tribal, and local health departments in areas with the highest rates of infant mortality to address birth defects, premature births, and other leading causes of infant death.

To authorize funding for the creation and implementation of infant 
  mortality pilot programs in standard metropolitan statistical areas 
      with high rates of infant mortality, 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 ``Nationally Enhancing the Well-being 
of Babies through Outreach and Research Now Act'' or the ``NEWBORN 
Act''.

SEC. 2. INFANT MORTALITY PILOT PROGRAMS.

    Section 330H of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254c-8) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f);
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
    ``(e) Infant Mortality Pilot Programs.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Administrator, shall award grants to eligible entities to 
        create, implement, and oversee infant mortality pilot programs.
            ``(2) Period of a grant.--The period of a grant under this 
        subsection shall be up to 5 years.
            ``(3) Preference.--In awarding grants under this 
        subsection, the Secretary shall give preference to--
                    ``(A) eligible entities proposing to serve any of 
                the 15 counties or groups of counties with the highest 
                rates of infant mortality in the United States in the 
                past 3 years; and
                    ``(B) eligible entities whose proposed infant 
                mortality pilot program would address--
                            ``(i) birth defects;
                            ``(ii) preterm birth and low birth weight;
                            ``(iii) sudden infant death syndrome;
                            ``(iv) maternal pregnancy complications; or
                            ``(v) injuries to infants.
            ``(4) Use of funds.--Any infant mortality pilot program 
        funded under this subsection may--
                    ``(A) include the development of a plan that 
                identifies the individual needs of each community to be 
                served and strategies to address those needs;
                    ``(B) provide outreach to at-risk mothers through 
                programs deemed appropriate by the Administrator;
                    ``(C) develop and implement standardized systems 
                for improved access, utilization, and quality of 
                social, educational, and clinical services to promote 
                healthy pregnancies, full-term births, and healthy 
                infancies delivered to women and their infants, such 
                as--
                            ``(i) counseling on infant care, feeding, 
                        and parenting;
                            ``(ii) postpartum care;
                            ``(iii) prevention of premature delivery; 
                        and
                            ``(iv) additional counseling for at-risk 
                        mothers, including smoking cessation programs, 
                        drug treatment programs, alcohol treatment 
                        programs, nutrition and physical activity 
                        programs, postpartum depression and domestic 
                        violence programs, social and psychological 
                        services, dental care, and parenting programs;
                    ``(D) establish a rural outreach program to provide 
                care to at-risk mothers in rural areas;
                    ``(E) establish a regional public education 
                campaign, including a campaign to--
                            ``(i) prevent preterm births; and
                            ``(ii) educate the public about infant 
                        mortality;
                    ``(F) provide for any other activities, programs, 
                or strategies as identified by the community plan; and
                    ``(G) coordinate efforts between--
                            ``(i) the health department of each county 
                        or other eligible entity to be served through 
                        the infant mortality pilot program; and
                            ``(ii) existing entities that work to 
                        reduce the rate of infant mortality within the 
                        area of any such county or other eligible 
                        entity.
            ``(5) Limitation.--Of the funds received through a grant 
        under this subsection for a fiscal year, an eligible entity 
        shall not use more than 10 percent for program evaluation.
            ``(6) Reports on pilot programs.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after 
                receiving a grant, and annually thereafter for the 
                duration of the grant period, each entity that receives 
                a grant under paragraph (1) shall submit a report to 
                the Secretary detailing its infant mortality pilot 
                program.
                    ``(B) Contents of report.--The reports required 
                under subparagraph (A) shall include information such 
                as the methodology of, and outcomes and statistics 
                from, the grantee's infant mortality pilot program.
                    ``(C) Evaluation.--The Secretary shall use the 
                reports required under subparagraph (A) to evaluate, 
                and conduct statistical research on, infant mortality 
                pilot programs funded through this subsection.
            ``(7) Definitions.--For the purposes of this subsection:
                    ``(A) Administrator.--The term `Administrator' 
                means the Administrator of the Health Resources and 
                Services Administration.
                    ``(B) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' 
                means a county, city, territorial, or tribal health 
                department that has submitted a proposal to the 
                Secretary that the Secretary deems likely to reduce 
                infant mortality rates within the standard metropolitan 
                statistical area involved.
                    ``(C) Tribal.--The term `tribal' refers to an 
                Indian tribe, a Tribal organization, or an Urban Indian 
                organization, as such terms are defined in section 4 of 
                the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.''; and
            (3) in subsection (f), as redesignated--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by amending the heading to read: 
                        ``Healthy start initiative''; and
                            (ii) by inserting after ``carrying out this 
                        section'' the following: ``(other than 
                        subsection (e))'';
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph 
                (3);
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) Infant mortality pilot programs.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 
        through 2025 to carry out subsection (e). Amounts authorized by 
        this paragraph to be appropriated to carry out subsection (e) 
        are in addition to amounts authorized by paragraph (1) to be 
        appropriated to carry out the Healthy Start Initiative under 
        subsection (a).''; and
                    (D) in paragraph (3)(A), as redesignated, by 
                striking ``the program under this section'' and 
                inserting ``the program under subsection (a)''.
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