Title: COVID Vaccine Transportation Access Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
COVID Vaccine Transportation Access Act
This bill establishes a grant program to remove transportation barriers in accessing COVID-19 vaccination sites. It also requires the federal government to cover the full cost of nonemergency transportation benefits related to accessing a COVID-19 vaccine for Medicaid recipients.
Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services must award the grants through state health agencies to nonprofits that have experience providing services to communities with disparities in health status and health care access. Grant-funded projects may include prescheduled or on-demand transportation to and from COVID-19 vaccination sites.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3013 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3013

To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants 
  for removing transportation barriers to accessing vaccines for SARS-
  CoV-2, including booster vaccines, for individuals from low-income 
   communities, minority communities, or other communities in which 
  transportation poses a barrier to health care access, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 7, 2021

 Ms. Barragan (for herself, Mr. Cardenas, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. 
    Ruiz, Ms. Norton, Mr. Blumenauer, and Mr. Soto) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants 
  for removing transportation barriers to accessing vaccines for SARS-
  CoV-2, including booster vaccines, for individuals from low-income 
   communities, minority communities, or other communities in which 
  transportation poses a barrier to health care access, 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 ``COVID Vaccine Transportation Access 
Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR CORONAVIRUS VACCINE ACCESS AND MOBILITY.

    (a) General Authority.--
            (1) Awards.--The Secretary shall award grants to qualified 
        community organizations to assist in financing projects to 
        remove transportation barriers to accessing vaccines for SARS-
        CoV-2, including booster vaccines, for individuals from low-
        income communities, minority communities, or other communities 
        in which transportation poses a barrier to health care access.
            (2) Transfer of duties.--The Secretary shall--
                    (A) enter into agreements with State health 
                agencies for purposes of carrying out the duties 
                assigned to the Secretary under this section; and
                    (B) transfer to such agencies for such purposes 
                funds appropriated to carry out this section.
    (b) Application.--A qualified community organization seeking a 
grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary an application 
that contains--
            (1) a description of the project to be funded through the 
        grant;
            (2) an identification of all project partners and their 
        specific role in the proposed project, including private for-
        profit and nonprofit entities engaged in the coordination of 
        transportation services for the project; and
            (3) specific performance measures the qualified community 
        organization will use to reduce cancellations or missed 
        appointments.
    (c) Period of Performance.--Each grant awarded under subsection (a) 
shall be for a period of performance of no less than 6 months.
    (d) Use of Funds.--Each grant awarded under subsection (a)--
            (1) shall be used to develop, expand, and enhance access to 
        transportation to and from sites for receipt of a vaccine for 
        SARS-CoV-2, including a booster vaccine, by individuals from 
        low-income communities, minority communities, or other 
        communities in which transportation poses a barrier to health 
        care access; and
            (2) may be used to--
                    (A) provide prescheduled or on-demand 
                transportation to and from a site for administration of 
                a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, including a booster vaccine; or
                    (B) provide first and last mile transportation 
                services for appointments for administration of such a 
                vaccine.
    (e) Report.--As a condition on receipt of a grant under this 
section, a grantee shall agree to submit a report, not later than 6 
months after the completion of the period of performance of the grant--
            (1) to the Secretary, the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
        of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Health, 
        Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate; and
            (2) containing such information the Secretary determines 
        necessary to evaluate performance under the grant.
    (f) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) First and last mile.--The term ``first and last mile'' 
        means, with respect to transportation services and an 
        individual's trip to and from a vaccine appointment--
                    (A) transportation--
                            (i) between the individual's point of trip 
                        origin and a source of public transit; and
                            (ii) between a source of public transit and 
                        the individual's destination; or
                    (B) where no source of public transit is available, 
                transportation between the individual's point of trip 
                origin and the individual's destination.
            (2) Qualified community organization.--The term ``qualified 
        community organization'' means an organization that--
                    (A) is a nonprofit organization; and
                    (B) has experience in--
                            (i) managing Federal grants; and
                            (ii) providing services to low-income or 
                        minority communities or communities that 
                        disproportionately experience disparities in 
                        health status and health care access.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.

SEC. 3. FEDERAL MEDICAL ASSISTANCE PERCENTAGE.

    Section 1905(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d(b)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new sentence: 
``Notwithstanding the first sentence of this subsection, the Federal 
medical assistance percentage shall be 100 per centum with respect to 
amounts expended for nonemergency transportation benefits provided to 
individuals eligible for medical assistance under this subchapter that 
are attributable to transportation costs incurred on or after the date 
of the enactment of this sentence related to providing coronavirus 
vaccines to such individuals under the State plan.''.
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