HeLP America Act

Bill: 113-s-39
Sponsor: Sen. Harkin, Tom [D-IA]
Introduced: 2013-01-22 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Academic performance and assessments
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Advisory bodies
Alternative treatments
Child care and development
Child health
Commuting
Congressional oversight
Department of Health and Human Services
Disability and health-based discrimination
Disability and paralysis
Drug, alcohol, tobacco use
Education programs funding
Elementary and secondary education
Employee benefits and pensions
Food assistance and relief
Food industry and services
Food supply, safety, and labeling
Fruit and vegetables
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Health care costs and insurance
Health programs administration and funding
Health promotion and preventive care
Horticulture and plants
Income tax credits
Income tax deductions
Income tax exclusion
Marketing and advertising
Medicaid
Medical education
Medical research
Mental health
Nutrition and diet
Outdoor recreation
Parks, recreation areas, trails
Physical fitness and lifestyle
Preschool education
Public contracts and procurement
Research administration and funding
Sales and excise taxes
Sports and recreation facilities
Teaching, teachers, curricula
Women's employment
Women's health
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2013-01-22
text: 
Healthy Lifestyles and Prevention America Act or HeLP America Act - Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, the Public Health Service Act, and other specified health law to establish or expand programs for children's nutrition and physical activity in schools and with child care providers, expanding the free fresh fruit program, promoting equal opportunities for students with disabilities to participate in schools and colleges, revising the definition of &quot;core academic subject&quot; to include physical education, and including the promotion of healthy, active lifestyles by students within educational grant programs.

Sets forth requirements to expand healthy activities in the community, permitting use of schools for recreational and nutritional purposes during nonschool hours, awarding grants for sports and athletic programs for individuals with disabilities, awarding grants to establish community gardens, requiring physical activity guidelines for the general public, and promoting healthy foods and physical activity at national parks. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the excise tax on tobacco products. Establishes a program to assist federal departments and agencies in integrating health goals into their activities.
 
Addresses workplace wellness, allowing a wellness program credit for employers, excluding from an employee's income the fees paid by an employer to an athletic or fitness facility on the employee's behalf, and promoting breastfeeding among working mothers. Establishes requirements for federal buildings, including those for: (1) application of menu labeling requirements to food establishments and nutritional standards for food provided in such buildings, (2) prompts encouraging individuals to use stairs, and (3) installation of bicycle storage areas.
 
Sets forth requirements to reduce the sodium content of processed food and restaurant food, expand nutritional labeling requirements, establish a front-label food guidance system, and strengthen health literacy.

Disallows a deduction for expenses relating to advertising or marketing of any tobacco product. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to impose an industry-wide penalty on manufacturers of cigarettes for failure to achieve youth tobacco use reduction goals. 
Expands coverage of preventive services through title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act and the Federal Employees Health Benefits program.
 
Establishes a training program for health professionals related to the prevention, identification, and treatment of overweight patients, obesity, and eating disorders.
 
Requires the Secretary to: (1) award grants for training in integrative medicine, (2) establish a national consortium on breastfeeding research, and (3) implement public health monitoring measures to address mental health and substance use disorders.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-01-22
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2013-01-22
text: Introduced in Senate