lcalvobartolome/proxann_data huggingface dataset:
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-05-21 00:00:00

Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission to develop, coordinate, and facilitate implementation of a national plan for rural health quality improvements. Requires that such plan: (1) identify objectives for rural health quality improvement; (2) identify strategies to eliminate known gaps in rural health system capacity and improve rural health quality; and (3) provide for federal programs to identify opportunities for strengthening and aligning policies and programs to improve rural health quality. Directs the Commission to: (1) design demonstration projects to test alternative models for rural health quality improvement, including with respect to both personal and population health; and (2) monitor progress towards identified objectives. Requires the Secretary to make grants for demonstration projects to implement and evaluate methods for improving the quality of health care in rural communities that include: (1) alternative community models; (2) innovative approaches to the financing and delivery of health services; and (3) the development of quality improvement support structures to assist rural health systems and professionals. Directs the Secretary to: (1) expedite Medicaid and Medicare waivers as necessary to carry out such demonstration projects; and (2) provide for an independent evaluation of such projects.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-09 00:00:00

Health Equity and Accountability through Research Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to rename the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities as the National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities. Revises and expands the duties of the Director of such Institute relating to coordination of research activities conducted by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and review of a strategic plan and budget for minority health disparity research.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Law
Date: 2009-06-10 00:00:00

Medical Liability Procedural Reform Act of 2009 - Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants to states to develop, implement, and evaluate health care tribunals. Defines "health care tribunal" to mean a trial court or administrative tribunal: (1) the sole function of which is to adjudicate disputes over injuries allegedly caused by health care providers; (2) to which all or a portion of such disputes within a jurisdiction are assigned; and (3) the judges for which have health care expertise and render decisions about the standard of care in dispute adjudication, with reliance on independent expert witnesses commissioned by such court or tribunal. Permits the Attorney General to provide technical assistance to states to: (1) develop common definition, formats, and data collection infrastructure for states to use in reporting in order to facilitate aggregation and analysis of data within and between states; and (2) provide guidance about the identification and selection of heath care tribunal judges and independent expert witnesses, compensation of injured patients, and clinical resources relating to the standard of care. Requires the Attorney General to contract with a research organization to evaluate and report on the effectiveness of grants awarded, to include an analysis of the effect of such grants on: (1) the number, nature, and costs of health care liability claims; (2) the liability environment; (3) health care quality; and (4) patient safety.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-10 00:00:00

Ensuring Continuous Medicaid Coverage for Children Act of 2009 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to change from discretionary to mandatory the authority of state Medicaid plans to provide for 12-month continuous coverage of children under Medicaid.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-10 00:00:00

States' Right To Innovate in Health Care Act of 2009 - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title XXII (State Comprehensive Health Care and Cost Containment Demonstration Projects). Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a state-based Universal Health Care Coverage Commission to participate in the review of state applications for planning and demonstration grants for the development of a cost-effective delivery system of universal, comprehensive health care with simplified administration. Authorizes such grants. Requires a state plan to provide: (1) coverage of all eligible state residents, without regard to employment status, income, health status or preexisting condition, or location of residency within the state; and (2) health benefits that are at least actuarially equivalent to the standard Blue Cross/Blue Shield preferred provider option service benefit plan under the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program. Allows one or more contiguous states in a geographic region to file a joint application for such grants. Authorizes Interstate Compacts of states to conduct joint health care programs under a grant.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-11 00:00:00

Doctor-Patient Relationship and Research Protection Act - Amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to: (1) expand the membership of the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research; and (2) require the Council to provide for a public comment period prior to obligating funds for comparative effectiveness research, support increased public awareness of such research, and identify conflicts of interest in appointing members of the Council. Prohibits the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from using federally funded clinical comparative effectiveness research data to make coverage determinations under Medicare for medical treatments, services, and items on the basis of cost. Provides for expedited appeals of Medicare coverage determinations using federally funded comparative effectiveness research. Denies federal funding for clinical comparative effectiveness research that does not consider racial, ethnic, gender, and geographic differences within patient subpopulations.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-12 00:00:00

Medicare Quality Improvement Organization Modernization Act of 2009 - Amends title XI of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require utilization and quality control peer review organizations to offer quality improvement assistance to providers, practitioners, Medicare Advantage organizations under part C (Medicare+Choice) of title XVIII (Medicare), and prescription drug sponsors under part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) of such title. Allows an organization to provide de-identified patient data to providers treating the same population of patients for the purpose of measuring and improving the safety, quality, and effectiveness of patient transitions from one service provider to another. Requires the organization to establish a Medicare quality accountability program. Adds a program administration component under part B (Peer Review) of SSA title XI. Directs the Secretary to ensure that Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs) are provided maximum freedom in designing and applying intervention strategies for local quality improvement. Revises requirements for the quality improvement program, including use of evaluation and competition, quality improvement funding, and qualifications for QIOs. Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to require state medical assistance plans to provide for an alternative quality improvement program.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Date: 2009-06-15 00:00:00

Rural Veterans Health Care Improvement Act of 2009 - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay travel expenses for veterans receiving treatment at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities at the rate of 41.5 cents per mile. (Under current law the rate is that provided to federal employees in connection with the performance of official duties.) Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish and operate at least one and up to five centers of excellence for rural health research, education, and clinical activities; (2) establish a grant program to provide innovative transportation options to veterans in highly rural areas; (3) carry out demonstration projects to examine alternatives for expanding care for veterans in rural areas; (4) establish a program to provide peer support, readjustment, and mental health services to veterans who served in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom (and related services to their family members); (5) assign an Indian Veterans Health Care Coordinator for each of the ten VA facilities that serve communities with the greatest per capita number of Indian veterans; (6) report to Congress jointly with the Secretary of Health and Human Services on the advisability of the joint establishment and operation by the VA's Veterans Health Administration and the Indian Health Service of health clinics to serve populations of Indian reservations, including Indian veterans; and (7) report annually to Congress on matters related to VA care for veterans residing in rural areas.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-17 00:00:00

Medicare Efficiency Incentive Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to authorize an incentive payment equal to 5% of the payment amount for certain physicians' services furnished by a participating physician in an efficient area.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-17 00:00:00

Directs the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) to report annually to Congress an evaluation, by Medicare administrative contractor area, of access to care, quality of care, increases or decreases in volume of services among such areas, and the potential effects of MEDPAC's most recent policy recommendations on access to care in such areas.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-18 00:00:00

Healthcare Improvements for Generating High Performance (HIGH Performance) Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) establish national priorities and goals for quality improvement in the delivery of health care services in the United States; (2) convene an interagency committee to coordinate the health care quality improvement activities of certain federal agencies; and (3) establish a Center for Health Extension (Center) within the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality of HHS to improve health care quality and evaluate progress in improving patient outcomes. Requires the Center to: (1) identify and develop clinical, managerial, and health care delivery best practices; (2) provide training and technical assistance to hospitals and health care facilities to implement such best practices; (3) establish Regional Health Care Centers to assist in training and education of health care providers in quality improvement; and (4) provide for public dissemination of information relating to activities and research conducted under this Act.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-18 00:00:00

Accountable Care Promotion Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct a pilot program to test different payment incentive models designed to reduce the growth of expenditures and improve health outcomes in the provision to beneficiaries of items and services by qualifying accountable care organizations (ACOs) of physicians. Specifies among payment incentive models a performance target model and a partial capitation model. Allows the Secretary to develop other models.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-23 00:00:00

Josephine Butler United States Health Service Act - Establishes the United States Health Service as an independent executive branch entity to provide health care and supplemental health services to all individuals within the United States. Requires the President to appoint members to a National Health Board to exercise the authority of the Service. Establishes an Office of the Inspector General for Health Services. Requires the Service to ensure that every individual is given certain basic health rights, including the right to receive high quality care and supplemental services from any facility within the Service capable of providing such services without charge and without discrimination. Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide employees with leave to receive necessary health care services. Requires the Board to: (1) establish any necessary health care facilities; (2) establish guidelines for the classification, certification, and employment of health workers by job category; (3) provide for the education of health workers through health team schools and loan repayment; (4) establish a health advocacy program to ensure the realization of patients' rights; (5) oversee occupational safety and health programs; and (6) conduct research concerning health and health care delivery. Transfers to the Board the agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that conduct research on health and health care. Requires the Board to establish additional research institutes. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a health services tax on the income of individuals and corporations to fund the Health Service Trust Fund (established under this Act). Transfers to the Service certain authority of the Secretary of HHS.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-23 00:00:00

Ending LGBT Health Disparities Act - Sets forth provisions concerning the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the tax exclusion for employer-provided health care benefits to eligible beneficiaries of the employee and the qualifying children of such beneficiaries. Limits preexisting condition exclusions. Requires parity in the rights and obligations of a federal employee (defined to exclude members of the uniformed services) with a domestic partner and a married employee and the spouse. Expands the definition of "spouse" and "married" for purposes of Medicare. Phases out the 24-month waiting period for eligibility for hospital insurance benefits under Medicare. Prohibits discrimination: (1) on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity under Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP, formerly known as SCHIP), Medicare, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program; and (2) on the basis of sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation by the Secretary of Defense against a former member of uniformed services entitled to medical care, and by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to support demonstration projects to improve the health and health care of sexual or gender minorities. Establishes within the Office of Minority Health an Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health to be headed by a Deputy Assistant Secretary for LGBT Health. Requires the HHS Secretary, acting through the Deputy Assistant Secretary, to establish the Center for Cultural Competence in Health Care. Provides for expanded research concerning sexual and gender minority individuals and the collection of sexual or gender minority data in health programs and surveys. Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to provide benefits to surviving same-sex parents.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-26 00:00:00

Health Security for All Americans Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act regarding: (1) the physician payment update; (2) geographic cost-of-practice indices (GPCI) floors; (3) annual physical examinations; (4) the Medicare-dependent hospital (MDH) program; (5) the inpatient hospital payment adjustment for low-volume hospitals; and (6) proportional representation of rural area interests on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC). Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a national public information campaign on initial preventive physical examinations for Medicare beneficiaries. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) with respect to rules governing enhanced marketplace pools for small business health plans. Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to add a new title XXXI (Health Care Insurance Marketplace Modernization) under which the Secretary shall promulgate regulations establishing minimum standards for health insurance premium variations and model small group rating rules. Provides for affordable plans and the harmonization of health insurance standards. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction for the qualified health insurance costs of individuals. Amends veterans benefits law to allow an enrolled veteran to elect to receive covered health services through a non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility. Authorizes VA pharmacies to dispense medications to veterans on private practitioner prescriptions. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a program of child care assistance for individuals pursuing advanced nursing degrees. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary to award grants to partnerships of accredited nursing schools and hospitals or health facilities to establish projects to enable a hospital or health facility to retain its staff of experienced nurses while having these individuals become, through an accelerated nursing education program, faculty members of an accredited nursing school. Amends PHSA to authorize the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to enter into an agreement for the repayment of education loans with any U.S. citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident who: (1) holds an unencumbered license as a registered nurse; and (2) has either already completed a master's or doctorate nursing program at an accredited school of nursing or is currently enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis in such a program. Requires each such agreement to require the eligible individual to serve as a full-time member of the faculty of an accredited school of nursing for a minimum four-year period. Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to carry out programs to increase the number of nurses within the armed forces. Prescribes requirements for determination of the effective date of active duty for members of a reserve component of the armed forces.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-26 00:00:00

Medicare Payment Fairness Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to create a value index for the physician work component for each Medicare physician fee schedule area. Requires the Secretary to create a value index for each hospital service area under the inpatient hospital prospective payment system (PPS).
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-06-26 00:00:00

Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, to establish the Robert T. Matsui Center for Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Health Care. Provides for health care workforce diversity activities, including the establishment of: (1) a national working group on workforce diversity; (2) an aggregated database on health professional students; and (3) the Advisory Committee on Health Professions Training for Diversity. Requires health-related programs of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collect data on race, ethnicity, primary language, and sexual orientation. Directs each federal health agency to implement a strategic plan to eliminate disparities on the basis of race, ethnicity, and primary language and improve the health and health care of minority populations. Prohibits discrimination under any health care service or research program or activity receiving federal financial assistance on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability status. Requires the establishment of: (1) an Office of Health Disparities within the Office of Civil Rights; (2) civil rights compliance offices in HHS agencies that administer health programs; and (3) an Office of Minority Health within specified agencies. Reestablishes the Indian Health Service within the Public Health Service of HHS to be administered by the Assistant Secretary of Indian Health. Directs the President to execute, administer, and enforce provisions to address environmental justice in minority and low-income populations. Health Empowerment Zone Act of 2009 - Provides for the establishment of health empowerment zones in communities that experience disproportionate disparities in health status and health care. Sets forth programs to reduce health disparities, including by: (1) expanding the Minority HIV/AIDS initiative; (2) establishing the Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission; and (3) revising eligibility requirements for federal assistance programs with respect to individuals lawfully present in the United States. Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act of 2009 - Requires the Secretary to implement the Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Program to achieve a reduction of at least 25% in the mortality rate of lung cancer by 2015. Provides for research and other activities with respect to diabetes in minority populations.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Date: 2009-06-26 00:00:00

Amends the Veterans' Mental Health and Other Care Improvements Act of 2008 to revise the location requirements for participation of a verteran in a highly rural area in the pilot program under which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides health services to a covered veteran through qualifying non-Department of Veterans Affairs health care providers.
Topic: Health — Health Care Reform
Subject: Health
Date: 2009-07-16 00:00:00

Women's Health Office Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish an Office on Women's Health within the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office, to establish: (1) a Department of Health and Human Services Coordinating Committee on Women's Health; and (2) a National Women's Health Information Center. Transfers the functions of the Office on Women's Health of the Public of Health Service to the Office on Women's Health within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Social Security Act, and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish separate Offices of Women's Health within the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Office of the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the Office of the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and an Office of Women's Health and Gender-Based Research within the Office of the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Directs the lead officers of each Office of Women's Health to establish goals, provide information on women's health activities, and establish a Coordinating Committee on Women's Health within their respective agencies. Prohibits termination, reorganization, or transfers of powers and duties of any federal office of women's health or appointive position with primary responsibility over women's health issues without adoption of a joint resolution of approval.