Title: Reporting Accountability and Abuse Prevention Act of 2021
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Reporting Accountability and Abuse Prevention Act of 2021
This bill requires recipients of grants for family planning services to demonstrate their compliance with state and local laws that mandate reporting of child abuse, human trafficking, or other mistreatment.
If a grantee does not comply, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must first work with the grantee to remedy violations. For subsequent violations, the bill directs HHS to recoup funds received by the grantee. It also bars the grantee from receiving family planning funds for 36 months.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 608 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 608

  To amend title X of the Public Health Service Act to require grant 
recipients to comply with all applicable State and local laws requiring 
  notification or reporting of child abuse, child molestation, sexual 
 abuse, rape, incest, intimate partner violence, or human trafficking, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 28, 2021

 Mr. Smucker introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title X of the Public Health Service Act to require grant 
recipients to comply with all applicable State and local laws requiring 
  notification or reporting of child abuse, child molestation, sexual 
 abuse, rape, incest, intimate partner violence, or human trafficking, 
                        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 ``Reporting Accountability and Abuse 
Prevention Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. COMPLIANCE BY PROJECTS FUNDED UNDER TITLE X WITH STATE AND 
              LOCAL SEXUAL ABUSE REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    Title X of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300 et seq.) is 
amending by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 1009. COMPLIANCE WITH STATE AND LOCAL SEXUAL ABUSE REPORTING 
              REQUIREMENTS.

    ``(a) In General.--As a condition on the award or renewal of a 
grant under this title for any project or program, the Secretary shall 
require the grant recipient to comply with all applicable State and 
local laws requiring notification or reporting of child abuse, child 
molestation, sexual abuse, rape, incest, intimate partner violence, or 
human trafficking (in this section referred to as `State notification 
laws').
    ``(b) Required Compliance.--In ensuring compliance with subsection 
(a) for a project or program, the grant recipient shall provide to the 
Secretary appropriate documentation or otherwise demonstrate to the 
Secretary's satisfaction that the grant recipient--
            ``(1) has in place and implements a plan to comply with 
        State notification laws, including, at a minimum, policies and 
        procedures that include--
                    ``(A) a summary of obligations under State 
                notification laws of the project or program, or of each 
                organization and individual carrying out the project or 
                program, including any obligation to inquire about or 
                determine the age of a minor patient or of a minor 
                patient's sexual partner;
                    ``(B) timely and adequate annual training of all 
                individuals (whether or not they are employees) serving 
                patients for, or on behalf of, the project or program 
                regarding--
                            ``(i) compliance with State notification 
                        laws;
                            ``(ii) policies and procedures of the 
                        project or program with respect to notification 
                        and reporting of child abuse, child 
                        molestation, sexual abuse, rape, incest, 
                        intimate partner violence, and human 
                        trafficking; and
                            ``(iii) appropriate interventions, 
                        strategies, and referrals to improve the safety 
                        and current situation of the patient;
                    ``(C) protocols to ensure that every minor who 
                presents for treatment is provided counseling on how to 
                resist attempts to coerce the minor into engaging in 
                sexual activities; and
                    ``(D) a commitment to conduct a preliminary 
                screening of any minor who presents with a sexually 
                transmitted disease, pregnancy, or any suspicion of 
                abuse, in order to rule out victimization of the minor; 
                and
            ``(2) maintains records that demonstrate compliance with 
        each of the requirements set forth in paragraph (1) and--
                    ``(A) indicate the age of minor patients;
                    ``(B) document each notification or report made 
                pursuant to State notification laws; and
                    ``(C) indicate the age of the minor patient's 
                sexual partners if such age is an element of a State 
                notification law under which a report is required.
    ``(c) Review of Records.--As a condition on the award or renewal of 
a grant under this title for any project or program, a grant recipient 
shall agree to allow the Secretary, the Inspector General of the 
Department of Health and Human Services, and the Comptroller General of 
the United States to review the records maintained by the grant 
recipient, including any contractor or subgrantee of the grant 
recipient, for the purpose of ensuring compliance with this section.
    ``(d) Penalties for Noncompliance.--The Secretary shall--
            ``(1) if the Secretary finds that a grantee under this 
        title has violated subsection (a), (b), or (c), work with the 
        grantee to remedy such noncompliance; and
            ``(2) if the Secretary finds that the grantee commits a 
        subsequent violation of subsection (a), (b), or (c)--
                    ``(A) seek repayment of all monetary Federal 
                assistance received by the grantee under this title on 
                or after the date of enactment of the Reporting 
                Accountability and Abuse Prevention Act of 2021; and
                    ``(B) not award or provide any assistance under 
                this title to the grantee for a period of at least 36 
                months following the date of finding that the grantee 
                has committed such subsequent violation.''.
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