zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Strengthening Technical Assistance, Resources, and Training to Unleash the Potential of Veterans Act of 2015 or the STARTUP Vets Act of 2015

This bill amends the Small Business Act to require the Small Business Administration (SBA) to make two-year renewable grants to create and operate incubators and accelerators that provide technical assistance and training to covered individuals on how to become successful entrepreneurs and form small business concerns.

Such program shall be considered an SBA management and technical assistance training program.

Program outreach materials shall be made available at local Department of Veterans Affairs facilities.

"Covered individual" means:

 a member of the Armed Forces, without regard to whether he or she participates in the Transition Assistance Program of the Department of Defense; an individual who is participating in the Transition Assistance Program; an individual who served on active duty in any branch of the Armed Forces, including the National Guard and Reserves, and was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable; and a spouse or dependent.

Date: 2015-11-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Commerce
Community Partnership Act of 2015

This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) an Office for Community Partnerships, headed by an Assistant Secretary for Community Partnerships.

The Assistant Secretary shall be responsible for:

 leading strategic and supportive efforts by DHS components and offices to counter violent extremism; developing a digital engagement strategy that expands the outreach efforts of DHS to counter violent extremist messaging; serving as the primary DHS representative in coordinating countering violent extremism efforts with other federal agencies and nongovernmental organizations and in coordinating with the Department of State on international countering violent extremism issues; providing guidance, in coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), regarding the use of grants made to state, local, and tribal governments under the Urban Area Security Initiative and the State Homeland Security Grant Program under the allowable uses guidelines related to countering violent extremism; developing a plan to expand philanthropic support for domestic efforts related to countering violent extremism; and administering grants to counter extremism, as authorized below. DHS may award grants or cooperative agreements directly, based on need, to states, local governments, tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, or institutions of higher education to support the efforts of local communities in the United States to prevent and counter violent extremism.

Date: 2015-12-08
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Emergency management
Help Small Businesses Access Affordable Credit Act 

This bill amends the Small Business Act to authorize the Small Business Administration (SBA), if demand for commitments for authorized general business loans exceeds the limit on the total amount of commitments the SBA may make for such loans, to make such commitments up to 110% of that limit.

The SBA may not exercise this authority until specified congressional committees have approved.

Date: 2016-02-03
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Commerce
Startup Entrepreneur Empowerment Delivery Act of 2016

This bill directs the Department of Commerce to carry out a one-year pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of awarding financial assistance of up to $120,000, on a competitive basis, to up to 10 local governments to support the development of startup businesses.

Such a local government must represent a population of 200,000 or less and be eligible to participate in the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research ("EPSCoR") of the National Science Foundation.

An eligible startup business must be under the local government's jurisdiction, have fewer than five full-time employees, and intend to produce a technology or product that may result in intellectual property vesting in an entity of the United States that can commercialize the technology in a timely manner.

Each local government receiving a grant shall ensure that the financial assistance it gives to a startup is used to assist with direct costs related to successfully growing a business.

Date: 2016-03-02
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Commerce
Protect Small Business Jobs Act of 2016

This bill requires a federal agency, before any enforcement action is taken on any sanction on a small business for any violation of a rule or pursuant to an adjudication, to: (1) notify the small business that it may be subject to a sanction at the end of a six-month grace period following such notification; (2) delay further action for 15 days after such notification; (3) defer further action for the six-month period (allowing an additional three-month period upon application by the small business demonstrating reasonable good-faith efforts to remedy the violation or other conduct giving rise to the sanction); (4) make a further determination at the end of the applicable grace period as to whether the small business would still be subject to the sanction; and (5) upon a negative determination, waive the sanction. The grace period shall be inapplicable with respect to a violation that puts anyone in imminent danger, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Any sanction imposed in violation of the requirements of this Act shall have no force or effect.

The bill requires: (1) agencies to report annually to the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman on the implementation of the requirements of this Act, and (2) the Ombudsman to include such information in a currently-required annual report to Congress.

Date: 2016-03-16
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Commerce
Disaster Management Act of 2016

This bill requires the National Advisory Council of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to commence a comprehensive study relating to disaster losses and federal disaster assistance. The council shall consider: (1) an assessment of trends in disaster costs and losses and federal disaster assistance and factors contributing to such trends; and (2) fundamental principles that drive national disaster assistance decision-making.

The council shall: (1) develop recommendations to reduce disaster costs and losses in the United States and to more efficiently and effectively deliver federal disaster assistance; and (2) report to FEMA and Congress on its data, analysis, and recommendations.

FEMA shall submit a report that includes an action plan to improve field operations after a major disaster or emergency declaration by the President.

FEMA shall establish: (1) a pilot program that increases the amount threshold for use of the simplified procedure for providing assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act for the purpose of determining whether such increase can facilitate a more efficient and effective delivery of assistance, without sacrificing oversight capabilities, for a major disaster or emergency declaration by the President; and (2) a pilot program that modifies the management cost rates used to determine contributions under such Act for management costs for the purpose of determining whether such modifications can facilitate a more efficient and effective administration of disaster assistance grants for a major disaster or emergency.

Date: 2016-05-23
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Emergency management
American Red Cross Transparency Act of 2016

This bill authorizes the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review: (1) the internal governance of the American National Red Cross (the corporation), and (2) any program or activity carried out by the corporation that is connected to national preparedness.

The bill grants the GAO: (1) access to, and the right to examine and copy, all records of the corporation that the GAO determines are relevant to such review; and (2) access to, and the right to interview, any employee, volunteer, agent, or member of the board of governors of the corporation whom the GAO believes has knowledge relevant to such review. The GAO may issue a subpoena and bring a civil action in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to enforce such access.

The bill establishes an Office of Investigations, Compliance, and Ethics as a subcommittee of the corporation's Audit and Risk Management Committee. The office shall: (1) conduct formal investigations regarding fraud, waste, abuse, corporation policy violations, illegal or unethical conduct, or other wrongdoing relating to the corporation; and (2) report annually on trends and systemic matters confronting the corporation and on pending and completed investigations.

Date: 2016-07-06
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Government operations and politics
Wildfire Mitigation Assistance Act

This bill amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to authorize the President, whether or not a major disaster is declared, to provide hazard mitigation assistance in any area or related area affected by a fire for which fire management assistance was provided under such Act. The President may establish a minimum amount of hazard mitigation assistance to be provided for a wildfire or fire complex.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) shall submit an annual report on projects carried out, and funding provided, pursuant to this bill.

Date: 2016-07-12
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Emergency management
Flood Emergency Tax Relief Act of 2016 (FLETRA) 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit individuals impacted by flooding in the Mississippi Delta to make penalty-free withdrawals from retirement accounts.

The bill waives the 10% additional tax on early distributions from retirement plans for up to $100,000 in distributions made on or after August 11, 2016, and before January 1, 2018. The distributions must be made to an individual: (1) whose principal place of abode on August 11, 2016, is located in the Mississippi River Delta disaster area, and (2) who has sustained an economic loss by reason of the severe storms and flooding giving rise to the Presidential declaration of a major disaster area in Louisiana on or after August 11, 2016, and before September 1, 2016.

A taxpayer who has received such a distribution may: (1) repay the distribution by making additional contributions to a retirement account within three years, and (2) include the distribution in gross income by dividing the amount over a three-year period.

Date: 2016-09-20
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Taxation
Disaster Assistance Improvement Act of 2016

This bill amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to prohibit the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from taking administrative action to recover any payment made to a state or local government for disaster or emergency assistance initiated in any forum (with exceptions for fraud) after three years following the transmission of the final expenditure report for project completion, as certified by the grantee (currently, after three years following the transmission of the final expenditure report for the disaster or emergency).

The bill makes the same change with respect to the deadline: (1) for any dispute arising under such Act for which there shall be a presumption that accounting records were maintained that adequately identify the source and application of funds provided for financially assisted activities, and (2) by which the inability of the government to produce source documentation supporting expenditure reports shall not constitute evidence to rebut such presumption.

With respect to a payment for disaster or emergency assistance provided to a state or local government on or after January 1, 2004, FEMA may not take administrative action to recover such payment after the date of enactment of this bill if the action is prohibited under such Act as amended by this bill.

Date: 2016-09-28
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Disaster Relief)
Subject: Emergency management
Veterans Timely Access to Health Care Act - Makes the standard for access to care for a veteran seeking primary care from the Department of Veterans Affairs 30 days from the date the veteran contacts the Department. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to prescribe an appropriate standard for waiting times at Department health-care facilities as measured from the time a visit is scheduled until the time the veteran is seen. Directs the Secretary to periodically review the performance of Department health-care facilities in meeting such standards. Authorizes the Secretary to contract for health care services in non-Department facilities in a case in which the Secretary is unable to meet access standards. Prohibits such contracting-out with respect to a Department geographic service area that has a compliance rate in meeting such standards of 90 percent or more. Requires quarterly reports from the Secretary to the congressional veterans' committees on the Department's experience with respect to waiting times.

Date: 2007-01-04
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Help Establish Access to Local Timely Healthcare for Your Vets (HEALTHY Vets) Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in the case of a veteran for whom Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical facilities are geographically inaccessible, to use current authority for contracting out veterans' medical care to non-Department facilities in order to provide the following care to such veterans: (1) primary care; (2) acute or chronic symptom management; (3) nontherapeutic medical services; and (4) other medical services determined appropriate by the director of that geographic service region, after consultation with the Department physician responsible for the veteran's primary care. Outlines conditions under which Department facilities shall be deemed geographically inaccessible. Authorizes the Secretary to waive the requirement of geographic inaccessibility, on a case-by-case basis, if the costs to the Department of providing such care significantly outweigh the benefits of localized health care for the veteran.

Date: 2007-01-05
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Medicaid County Protection Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require each state medical assistance plan to provide that the state's financial participation is 100% (currently 40%) of the nonfederal share of expenditures under the plan.

Date: 2007-01-09
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Health Partnership Through Creative Federalism Act - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a State Health Coverage Innovation Commission to: (1) request states to submit proposals for state health care expansion and improvement programs, which may include reform options such as tax credit approaches, expansions of public programs, or other appropriate alternatives; (2) review state applications and submit to Congress a list of state applications that the Commission recommends for approval; (3) report to the public concerning progress made by states; and (4) make recommendations to the Secretary and Congress for minimizing the negative effect of state programs on national employer groups, provider organizations, and insurers because of differing state requirements under the programs. Requires states to prepare and submit to the Commission a healthcare plan that has as its goal increased coverage and such additional goals as improvements in quality, efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and the appropriate use of information technology. Sets forth rules for congressional consideration of state proposals. Requires the Secretary to provide a grant to a state that has an application approved to enable such state to carry out an innovative state health program. Requires the Commission to direct the Secretary to: (1) fund a balanced diversity of approaches; and (2) link allocations to the state to the meeting of goals and performance measures related to health care coverage and health care costs. Prohibits states from: (1) changing eligibility criteria for state medical assistance programs; or (2) permitting the imposition of any preexisting condition exclusion for covered benefits, with exceptions.

Date: 2007-01-17
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Commission on Catastrophic Disaster Risk and Insurance Act of 2007 - Establishes the bipartisan Commission on Catastrophic Disaster Risk and Insurance to assess: (1) the condition of the property and casualty insurance and reinsurance markets in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma in 2005, and the four major hurricanes that struck the United States in 2004; (2) the ongoing exposure of the United States to windstorms, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and floods; and (3) recommend and report legislative and regulatory changes that will improve the domestic and international financial health and competitiveness of such markets.

Date: 2007-01-17
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Veterans Health Care Full Funding Act - Requires: (1) that in the President's budget for each fiscal year, amounts shall be requested for veterans health care programs for each two-year period; and (2) the Veterans Health Care Funding Review Board (established in this Act) to determine the level of funding needed for each period. Outlines the health care needs required to be included under the Board's determination. Establishes the Board. Provides standards for access to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) care for veterans seeking: (1) primary care; and: (2) specialized care.

Date: 2007-02-14
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Women's Health Office Act of 2007 - 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 congressional approval.

Date: 2007-02-15
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
American Health Security Act of 2007 - Establishes the State-Based American Health Security Program to provide every U.S. resident who is a U.S. citizen, national, or lawful resident alien with health care services. Requires each participating state to establish a state health security program. Eliminates benefits under: (1) titles XVIII (Medicare), XIX (Medicaid), and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act; (2) the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program; and (3) the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS). Requires each state health security program to prohibit the sale of health insurance in that state that duplicates benefits provided under the program. Establishes the American Health Security Standards Board to: (1) develop policies, procedures, guidelines and requirements to carry out this Act; (2) establish uniform reporting requirements; (3) provide for an American Health Security Advisory Council and an Advisory Committee on Health Professional Education; and (4) establish a national health security budget specifying the total Federal and State expenditures to be made for covered health care services. Establishes the American Health Security Quality Council to: (1) review and evaluate practice guidelines, standards of quality, performance measures, and medical review criteria; and (2) develop minimum competence criteria. Establishes the Office of Primary Care and Prevention Research within the Office of the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Amends the Internal Revenue Code to create the American Health Security Trust Fund and appropriates to the Fund specified tax liabilities and current health program receipts.

Date: 2007-02-27
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Imposes a two-year moratorium on implementation of a proposed rule ("Medicaid Program; Cost Limit for Providers Operated by Units of Government and Provisions To Ensure the Integrity of Federal-State Financial Partnership") relating to the federal-state financial partnerships under Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) under titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act.

Date: 2007-03-12
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Rural Veterans Access to Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct a three-year pilot program under which a highly rural veteran who is enrolled in the system of patient enrollment of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and who resides within a designated area of the Veterans Integrated Service Network may elect to receive covered health services through a non-VA health care provider. Defines a "highly rural veteran" as one who: (1) resides more than 60 miles from the nearest VA facility providing primary care services, more than 120 miles from a VA facility providing acute hospital care, or more than 240 miles from a VA facility providing tertiary care (depending on which services the veteran needs); or (2) otherwise experiences such hardships or other difficulties in travel to the nearest appropriate VA facility that such travel is not in the best interest of the veteran. Requires an annual program assessment report, during the three-year period, from the Secretary to the congressional veterans' committees, which shall include recommendations for continuing the program.

Date: 2007-03-14
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services 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.

Date: 2007-03-22
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Imposes a two-year moratorium on implementation of a proposed rule ("Medicaid Program; Cost Limit for Providers Operated by Units of Government and Provisions To Ensure the Integrity of Federal-State Financial Partnership") relating to the federal-state financial partnerships under Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) under titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act. Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services, at any time before the end of such two-year period, from taking any action to: (1) finalize (or otherwise implement) provisions contained in the proposed rule; or (2) restrict Medicaid payments for graduate medical education (GME).

Date: 2007-03-28
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
National Health Information Incentive Act of 2007 - Establishes within the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services an Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to add a new part D (Building the National Health Information Infrastructure). Directs the Secretary to make additional Medicare payment incentives to assure that small medical care providers have the capability to move toward a national health care information infrastructure by acquiring electronic health record systems and other health information technologies. Provides for optional financial incentives to small health care providers and entities to implement such an infrastructure. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) make grants to small medical care providers for the purpose of assisting them to acquire and adopt patient registries, evidence-based clinical decision support tools at the point of care, electronic health records, secure e-mail, and other health information technologies defined by the Secretary as a key component of a national health care information infrastructure; and (2) make and guarantee loans to assist small medical care providers to acquire and adopt such things. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat qualified health care information technology as a depreciable asset for which a deduction from taxable income is allowable for the taxable year in which it is placed in service.

Date: 2007-04-19
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Rural Veterans Health Care Improvement Act of 2007 - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay travel expenses for veterans receiving treatment at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities at the rate 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 remote rural areas; (3) carry out demonstration projects to examine alternatives for expanding care for veterans in rural areas; and (4) report annually to Congress on matters related to VA care for veterans residing in rural areas.

Date: 2007-04-23
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Medicare for All Act - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title XXII (Medicare for All) under which: (1) each eligible individual is entitled to benefits which include the full range and scope of benefits available under the original fee-for-service program under parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare), with parity in coverage of mental health benefits, subject to appropriate cost sharing; (2) each enrollee is free to choose his or her own doctor and private health plan; and (3) benefits are similar to or no less than the health benefits coverage under FEHBP (Federal Employees Health Benefits Program). Establishes the Medicare for All Trust Fund. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose: (1) on the income of every enrolled individual a tax equal to 1.7% of wages received in excess of $25,000; (2) on every employer an excise tax equal to 7% of the wages paid to each enrolled employee; and (3) on the self-employment income of every enrolled individual, a tax equal to the applicable percentage of the self-employment income for such taxable year in excess of $25,000. Sets forth provisions governing application of this Act to collective bargaining agreements.

Date: 2007-04-25
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Diabetes Prevention Access and Care Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to: (1) conduct, coordinate, and support research and other activities with respect to pre-diabetes and diabetes in minority populations; and (2) conduct and support programs to treat diabetes in minority populations. Requires the Director of NIH, through the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities, to provide for: (1) health care professionals' mentoring; and (2) minority health professionals' participation in diabetes-focused research programs. Directs the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee to develop and implement a federal plan to address diabetes mellitus within communities of color. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) conduct and support research and other activities with respect to diabetes in minority populations; (2) direct the Division of Diabetes Translation to conduct and support programs to educate the public on diabetes in minority populations; and (3) carry out diabetes health promotion and prevention programs for minority populations. Directs the Secretary to carry out: (1) education and awareness programs designed to increase participation of minority populations in clinical trials; and (2) mentorship programs for minority researchers who are conducting research on diabetes in minority populations. Provides for studies on the shortage of adult and pediatric endocrinologists specializing in diabetes and on outcomes of minority children with diabetes compared to non-minority children.

Date: 2007-05-08
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
WISEWOMAN Expansion Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) remove the limit on the number of states that may receive preventive heath services grants; (2) require a competitive review process; and (3) include among the uses for such grants health education, counseling, and interventions for behavioral risk factors and diseases. Authorizes appropriations.

Date: 2007-05-21
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Help Efficient, Accessible, Low Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2007 - Sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims regarding health care goods or services or any medical product affecting interstate commerce. Sets a statute of limitations of three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers the injury, with certain exceptions. Provides that nothing in this Act limits recovery of the full amount of available economic damages. Limits noneconomic damages to $250,000. Makes each party liable only for the amount of damages directly proportional to such party's percentage of responsibility. Allows the court to restrict the payment of attorney contingency fees. Limits the fees to a decreasing percentage based on the increasing value of the amount awarded. Allows the introduction of collateral source benefits and the amount paid to secure such benefits as evidence. Prohibits a provider of such benefits from recovering any amount from an award in a health care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. Authorizes the award of punitive damages only where: (1) it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that a person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant or deliberately failed to avoid unnecessary injury the claimant was substantially certain to suffer; and (2) compensatory damages are awarded. Limits punitive damages to the greater of two times the amount of economic damages or $250,000. Denies punitive damages in the case of products approved, cleared, or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or otherwise considered in compliance with FDA standards. Provides for periodic payments of future damages.

Date: 2007-06-06
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Healthy Lifestyles and Prevention America Act or the HeLP America Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to convene a task force on childhood obesity.Provides for: (1) healthy school nutrition environment incentive grants; (2) the establishment of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative to certify a hospital as a baby friendly hospital/center for breastfeeding excellence; and (3) programs to prevent youth problem behaviors.Healthy Workforce Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a wellness program credit for employers; and (2) exclude from an employee's income the fees paid by an employer to an athletic or fitness facility on the employee's behalf.Requires the Secretary to establish a National Advisory Committee on Community Sports Programs for Individuals with Disabilities. Provides incentives for states to ensure the safety and convenience of all users of a transportation system, including pedestrians and bicyclists. Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to require employers to provide lactation periods and lactation facilities to permit employees to breastfeed eligible children. Promoting Lifelong Active Communities Every Day Act or the PLAY Every Day Act - Provides for the development of a tool to measure community barriers to participating in physical activity and provides for grants to plan model communities of play.Requires certain restaurants and vending machines to provide nutritional information about each food offered, including the number of calories.Directs the Secretary to: (1) impose penalties on the tobacco industry for failure to achieve specified goals to reduce youth cigarette use; and (2) encourage a state program to recognize school-based health centers as a model of delivery for primary care for children eligible for federal medical assistance. Establishes the HeLP (Healthy Lifestyles and Prevention) America Trust Fund to fund smoking cessation drugs and other programs required by this Act.Provides for research on obesity, physical activity in schools, and dietary sodium intake.

Date: 2007-06-07
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Children's Health Care Quality Act - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a program to: (1) identify quality and performance measures for pediatric service providers; and (2) award grants or contracts for the development, validation, and testing of new and emerging measures. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, to establish demonstration projects to award grants to states to improve the delivery of health care services to children under Medicaid and SSA title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP). Requires demonstration projects in the categories of: (1) health information technology systems; (2) disease management for children with chronic conditions; (3) evidence-based quality improvement; and (4) quality and performance measures for providers of children's health care services. Requires the Comptroller General to make recommendations to Congress for the design and implementation of a demonstration project to evaluate the suitability of existing quality and performance measures for children's inpatient hospital services for public reporting, differentiating quality, identifying best practices, and providing a basis for payment rewards.

Date: 2007-06-14
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Health Care Access and Rural Equity (H-CARE) Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to: (1) the Medicare disproportionate share hospital (DSH) adjustment for rural hospitals; (2) payment for clinical laboratory tests furnished by critical access hospitals; (3) rebasing for sole community hospitals; (4) establishment of a rural community hospital program; (5) hold harmless provisions for small rural hospitals and sole community hospitals under the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for hospital outpatient department services; (6) coverage of marriage and family therapist services and mental health counselor services under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance); (7) permanent treatment of certain physician pathology services; (8) extension of the Medicare incentive payment program for a physician scarcity area; (9) proportional representation of rural area interests on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC); and (10) additional payments for providers furnishing ambulance services in rural areas and prompt payment of clean claims by Medicare prescription drug plans and MedicareAdvantage-Prescription Drug (MA-PD) plans under the Medicare part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program). Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to extend: (1) certain Medicare hospital wage index reclassifications and the disregarding of certain hospital reclassifications for purposes of group reclassifications; (2) Medicare reasonable costs payments for certain clinical diagnostic laboratory tests furnished to hospital patients in certain rural areas; and (3) the temporary Medicare payment increase for home health services furnished in a rural area. Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award competitive grants to eligible entities in rural areas for qualified health information technology systems; (2) direct the Secretary to establish a Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission; (3) provide for Delta Region rural disparities and health systems development, as well as small rural health care provider quality improvement grants; and (4) provide for expanded application of the 340B program of limited drug prices to drugs provided in rural hospitals, including hospital provision to states of Medicaid credits on certain inpatient drugs. Directs the Secretary to encourage and facilitate the adoption of telehealth provisions allowing for multistate practitioner access across state lines.

Date: 2007-06-26
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Pharmacy Benefit Manager Transparency Act of 2007 - Prohibits any pharmaceutical drug manufacturer from having a controlling interest in an entity that is a pharmacy benefit manager. Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue civil penalties for violations as necessary. Prohibits pharmacy benefit managers from making drug interchanges: (1) to a drug with a greater cost; (2) without disclosure to the individual of the savings associated with the interchange; or (3) from a drug with generic equivalents to a drug without generic equivalents, unless the latter is lower in cost than each of the generic equivalents of the drug from which the prescription would be changed. Requires pharmacy benefit managers to annually disclose all compensation received from drug manufacturers to the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and to the client plans of such manager.

Date: 2007-07-10
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Law
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.

Date: 2007-07-11
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act or the CLASS Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to create a national, voluntary disability insurance program (CLASS program) under which: (1) all employees are automatically enrolled, but are allowed to waive enrollment; (2) payroll deductions pay monthly premiums; and (3) two-tiered benefits are provided, based on the level of disability, to purchase nonmedical services and supports that the beneficiary needs to maintain independence. Establishes the Independence Fund within the Treasury. Requires the CLASS program to be treated for tax purposes in the same manner as a qualified long-term care insurance contract. Amends the Social Security Act to require each state to: (1) assess the extent to which personal care services providers are serving or able to serve as fiscal agents, employers, and providers of employment-related benefits for personal care attendant workers, who provide personal care services to individuals receiving benefits under this Act; (2) designate or create entities to serve such purposes; and (3) ensure that such entities will not negatively alter or impede existing programs, models, methods, or administration of service delivery that provide for consumer controlled or self-directed home and community services, impede the ability of individuals to direct and control their home and community services, or inhibit individuals from relying on family members for such services. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Personal Care Attendants Workforce Advisory Panel to examine and advise the Secretary and Congress on workforce issues related to personal care attendant workers. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a deduction for premiums paid for the CLASS program; (2) a credit CLASS program enrollees with low income; and (3) a credit for employers for the cost incurred to automatically enroll employees and withhold monthly premiums.

Date: 2007-07-11
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services 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 technical clearinghouse on health workforce diversity; and (2) Regional Minority Centers of Excellence Programs.Requires health-related programs of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to collect data on race, ethnicity, and primary language.Directs each federal health agency to implement a strategic plan to eliminate disparities and improve the health and health care of minority populations. Requires the Secretary to establish: (1) an Office of Health Disparities within the Office of Civil Rights; and (2) civil rights compliance offices in each HHS agency that administers health programs.Reestablishes the Indian Health Service as an agency within the Public Health Service of HHS to be administered by an Assistant Secretary of Indian Health.Requires the establishment of an Office of Minority Health within specified agencies.Directs the President to execute, administer, and enforce provisions to address environmental justice in minority and low-income populations. Provides for the establishment of health empowerment zone programs in communities that disproportionately experience disparities in health status and health care.Requires the Secretary to designate centers of excellence at public hospitals and other health systems that demonstrate excellence in providing care to minority populations and reducing health disparities.Makes immigrants from certain U.S. territories and possessions eligible for specified federal programs.Requires the Secretary to expand the Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative.Provides for grants for strategies to eliminate racial and ethnic health and health care disparities.Requires the Secretary to establish the Rural Health Quality Advisory Commission.

Date: 2007-07-12
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health
Meth Mouth Prevention and Community Recovery Act - Requires the Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention to make grants to enable public and private nonprofit entities to determine whether educating youth about meth mouth (oral decay that is commonly associated with methamphetamine use) is an effective strategy for preventing or reducing methamphetamine use. Reserves a portion of appropriated funds for Indian tribes and tribal organizations.Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to expand and intensify the clinical research, health services research, and public health research on associations between substance use disorders, oral health, and the provision of dental care.Requires the Secretary to study the effect methamphetamine use has on the demand for, and provision of, dental care.Directs the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to support training and offer technical assistance to ensure that dentists and allied dental personnel are prepared to: (1) recognize signs of alcohol or drug addiction; (2) discuss the nature of substance abuse as it relates to their area of expertise; (3) understand how certain dental therapies can affect the relapse potential of substance dependent patients; and (4) help those affected by a substance use disorder find appropriate treatment for their conditions.Authorizes the Administrator to collaborate with professional accrediting bodies to develop and support substance abuse training courses for oral health professionals.

Date: 2007-07-26
Topic: Health (Health Care Reform)
Subject: Health