zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Caring for an Aging America Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) establish a Geriatric and Gerontology Loan Repayment Program to enter into contracts with qualified physicians, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, pharmacists, social workers, physician assistants, and psychologists to pay educational loans in exchange for providing full-time clinical practice and service to older adults; and (2) establish the National Advisory Council on the Geriatric and Gerontology Loan Repayment Program. Requires the Secretary to ensure that individuals eligible for the nurse loan repayment program include registered nurses who complete specialty training in geriatrics or gerontology and who elect to provide nursing services to older adults in home and long-term care settings. Authorizes the Secretary to award nursing education grants and enter into contracts for programs that focus on specialty training in providing long-term care services for nursing personnel who provide services in home and long-term care settings. Requires the Secretary to establish a Health and Long-Term Care Workforce Advisory Panel to: (1) examine, and provide advice on, workforce issues related to health and long-term care for the aging population; and (2) conduct a research project to identify incentives for recruitment and retention of clinicians and providers who agree to serve vulnerable older adults in geriatric and long-term care settings.

Date: 2009-03-31
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Health Access and Health Professions Supply Act of 2009 or HAHPSA 2009  Establishes the Permanent National Health Workforce Commission. Requires the Commission to: (1) review federal policies related to the health professional workforce; (2) identify programs to reduce health professional isolation and build community health professional training infrastructure in rural, frontier, and urban underserved areas; and (3) develop guiding principles and accountability standards for the education of health professionals. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to makes matching grants to states for the operation of State Health Workforce Centers to improve the training, deployment, and retention of critical health professionals in underserved areas and for underserved populations. Revises provisions related to payments for direct graduate medical education costs and for the indirect costs of medical education, including to: (1) support the implementation of community-based training and innovative training models; and (2) require the Secretary to revise policies that constrain the Secretary's ability to respond to emergency situations and situations involving institutional and program closure. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary to use excess amounts appropriated to address shortages of health professionals in rural, frontier, and urban underserved areas. Provides for the expansion of existing loan repayment programs to emphasize the provision of health professions services to facilities that have health professional shortages. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish the National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program for Medical, Dental, Physician Assistant, Pharmacy, Behavioral and Mental Health, Public Health, and Nursing Students in the United States Public Health Sciences Track in Affiliated Schools; and (2) award grants to increase health professions training in high-needs specialties.

Date: 2009-04-02
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Volunteer Firefighter and EMS Support Act of 2009 - Amends the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a program to provide funds to a state or local government, nonprofit firefighter association, or governmental or nongovernmental emergency medical services (EMS) organization, that carries out a volunteer firefighter incentive program in accordance with this Act. Directs the Secretary, for each fiscal year in which a state or local government, nonprofit firefighter association, or governmental or nongovernmental EMS organization carries out a volunteer firefighter incentive program, to pay such government, association, or organization (organization), out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated for such fiscal year, a sum equal to the total expenditures of funds not received from the federal government made by such organization for that fiscal year to carry out the program. Declares that this constitutes budget authority in advance of appropriations Acts and represents the obligation of the federal government to provide payment to a state or local government, nonprofit firefighter association, or governmental or nongovernmental EMS organization any amount so provided.Requires reports from recipients, and from the Secretary annually, to Congress.

Date: 2009-04-02
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Emergency management
Nurses' Higher Education and Loan Repayment Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to repay education loans in exchange for an individual working as a full-time member of the faculty of an accredited school of nursing. Terminates the provisions of this Act on December 31, 2020.

Date: 2009-05-12
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Physical Therapist Student Loan Repayment Eligibility Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to include physical therapy within the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of provisions concerning the National Health Service Corps. Makes physical therapists eligible for repayment of their educational loans in order to ensure an adequate supply of physical therapists.

Date: 2009-05-14
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Safeguarding Our Hospitals' Futures Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in the case of discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2009, to apply budget neutrality on a national basis in the calculation of the Medicare hospital wage index floor, including a minimum wage index, for each all-urban and rural state for discharges occurring during FY2008 under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (through a uniform, national adjustment to the area wage index).

Date: 2009-05-20
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Public Health Workforce Development Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Public Health Workforce Scholarship Program to assure an adequate supply of public health professionals to eliminate critical public health workforce shortages in federal, state, local, and tribal public health agencies and centers by offering four-year scholarships in return for employment at such agencies and centers. Requires the Secretary to establish the Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment Program to provide for the repayment of loans incurred by individuals in the pursuit of the relevant public health workforce educational degree or certificate in exchange for working at public health agencies or centers for at least three years. Requires the Secretary to award grants to public health agencies that receive public health preparedness cooperative agreements from HHS to operate state, local, and tribal public health workforce loan repayment programs. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to, or enter into contracts with, any eligible entity to award scholarships to eligible individuals to enroll in degree or professional training programs for the purpose of enabling mid-career professionals in the public health workforce to receive additional training in the field of public health. Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), in cooperation with the Secretary, to ensure that included in the OPM website there is an online catalogue, or a link to an online catalogue, of public health workforce employment opportunities in the federal government.

Date: 2009-05-21
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Veterans to Paramedics Transition Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize entities receiving rural emergency medical service training and equipment grants to use grant funds to provide required coursework and training to enable military veterans to satisfy emergency medical services personnel certification requirements, as determined by the appropriate state regulatory entity.

Date: 2009-05-21
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Nurse Faculty and Physical Therapist Education Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Health Resources and Services Administration, to establish a Nurse Faculty Education Program to ensure an adequate supply of nurse faculty through awarding grants to eligible entities to: (1) hire new faculty, retain existing faculty, and purchase educational resources; (2) increase enrollment and graduation rates for students from doctoral programs; and (3) assist graduates in serving as nurse faculty in schools of nursing. Requires the Comptroller General to report on activities to increase participation in the nurse educator program. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to provide Geriatric Academic Career Awards to promote the career development of eligible individuals as geriatric nurse faculty. Requires the Secretary to establish a Nurse and Physical Therapist Distance Education Pilot Program to award grants for activities to increase accessibility to nursing and physical therapy education, including to: (1) assist individuals in rural areas who want to study nursing or physical therapy; (2) promote the study of nursing and physical therapy at all educational levels; (3) establish additional slots for nursing and physical therapy students at existing schools and programs; and (4) establish new nursing and physical therapy education programs at institutions of higher education Requires the Secretary to: (1) report on the country of origin or professional school of origin of newly licensed nurses and physical therapists in each state; and (2) contract with the Institute of Medicine to study the nursing and physical therapy workforce.

Date: 2009-06-02
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Community-Based Health Care Retraining Act - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to require the Secretary of Labor to establish and carry out a health professions training demonstration project that awards matching grants to eligible entities to train certain unemployed workers for employment as health care professionals in communities: (1) with a significant percentage decline in rates of employment and a health care professional shortage; or (2) that are underserved by the health care structure.

Date: 2009-06-03
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Allied Health Reinvestment Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop public service announcements to promote the allied health professions. Requires the Secretary to award grants to promote such professions by: (1) supporting relevant state and local advertising campaigns; (2) increasing education opportunities; (3) carrying out programs that form education pipelines to facilitate the entry of students into relevant careers; (4) expanding enrollment in such programs; (5) providing education through new technologies and methods; (6) enhancing the workforce through retention programs; (7) developing retention strategies; (8) expanding area health education centers to develop models of excellence for such professionals; and (9) developing clinical education, internship, and resident programs that encourage mentoring and the development of specialties. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to enter into agreements to establish faculty loan funds to increase the number of qualified allied health faculty. Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide scholarships to individuals seeking allied health education who agree to provide service in rural and other medically underserved areas with personnel shortages; (2) develop a system for collecting and analyzing workforce data to determine education pipeline and practitioner shortages and to project future needs for such a workforce; and (3) include allied health schools among the schools eligible to receive grants to support Centers of Excellence in health professions education for individuals from diverse communities and backgrounds. Requires the Comptroller General to conduct an evaluation of whether this Act has demonstrably increased the number of allied health education program applicants.

Date: 2009-06-03
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Rural Health Clinic Patient Access and Improvement Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to rural health clinic reimbursement. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make incentive payments to rural health clinic employees or contractors for satisfactory reporting of data on clinic quality measures. Amends the Public Health Service Act to allow a community health center to contract with a federally certified rural health clinic for the delivery of primary health care services to individuals who would otherwise be eligible for free or reduced cost care if they were able to obtain it at the community health center. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the diabetes education and medical nutrition therapy counseling services provided by federally qualified health clinics. Directs the Secretary to establish a demonstration project of grants to states to examine whether health care professionals can be recruited or retained to work in underserved rural areas by providing them with medical malpractice subsidies. States that a rural health clinic qualified under Medicare or Medicaid may be defined and certified by the Secretary as rural even if it fails to satisfy the requirement that it not be located in an urbanized area. Amends SSA title XVIII to establish the minimum Medicare Advantage plan payment rate for services furnished by a rural health clinic. Expresses the sense of the Senate concerning the adequacy of network-based health plans.

Date: 2009-06-25
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Strengthen Social Work Training Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to include a graduate program in clinical social work or a program in social work among health professions schools eligible for grants to support programs for underrepresented minorities. Includes graduate programs in clinical psychology, graduate programs in clinical social work, and programs in social work among health education programs eligible for grants to: (1) provide scholarships to disadvantaged students; and (2) offer faculty positions to disadvantaged students. Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to, and enter into contracts with: (1) schools offering degrees in social work to provide support for geriatric training projects; (2) hospitals, schools, or other entities to plan, develop, and operate or participate in an approved social work training program and to provide financial assistance to program participants that are planning to specialize, work, or teach in the field of social work; and (3) schools offering social work programs to establish, maintain, or improve academic administrative units to provide clinical instruction in social work. Authorizes health maintenance organizations (HMOs) to offer health services through a clinical social worker as provided for under state law.

Date: 2009-07-07
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Nurse Training and Retention Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish a partnership grant program to award matching grants to eligible entities to carry out comprehensive programs to provide education to nurses and create a pipeline to nursing for incumbent ancillary health care workers who wish to advance their careers.

Date: 2009-07-23
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Medicare Graduate Nursing Education Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to declare reasonable for Medicare payment purposes the educational and related costs of expanded advanced practice nurse training programs.

Date: 2009-08-03
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Health Professions and Primary Care Reinvestment Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to hospitals, medical schools, and other entities to train primary care providers to provide care through patient-centered medical homes and to develop tools and curricula and provide continuing education relevant to patient-centered homes. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis (National Center) to collect, analyze, and report data related to health workforce issues in coordination with the State and Regional Centers for Health Workforce Analysis; (2) award grants to, or enter into contracts with, states, state workforce commissions, and other health care entities to collect, analyze, and report to the National Center data on programs related to health workforce issues; and (3) increase the amount of grants or contracts awarded for the establishment and maintenance of a longitudinal tracking system (a system that tracks students, residents, fellows, interns, or faculty who have received education, training, or financial assistance from Health Professions Education and Training programs for at least five years). Requires the Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary, Community-Based Linkages and the Advisory Council on Graduate Medical Education to develop, publish, and implement performance measures for health professions education programs.

Date: 2009-09-25
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Women's Hospitals Education Equity Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make two payments to each eligible women's hospital for each of FY2010-FY2014: (1) one payment for direct expenses associated with operating approved graduate medical residency training programs; and (2) one for indirect expenses associated with the treatment of more severely ill patients and the additional costs relating to teaching residents in such programs. Requires the Secretary to: (1) make the payments in 12 equal interim installments based on the number of residents reported in the hospital's most recently filed Medicare cost report; (2) withhold up to 25% from each installment to ensure a hospital will not be overpaid on an interim basis; (3) determine, prior to the end of each fiscal year, any changes to the number of residents reported to determine the final amount; and (4) recoup any overpayments based on such determination. Considers the final amount so determined to be a final intermediary determination, subject to administrative and judicial review, under the Social Security Act. Applies to women's hospitals under this Act annual reporting requirements and provisions regarding direct graduate medical education payments and indirect medical education payments applicable to children's hospitals that operate graduate medical education programs.

Date: 2009-10-01
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Securing Effective and Necessary Individual Outpatient Rehabilitation Services (SENIORS) Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend through calendar 2010 the temporary process for obtaining an exception from the uniform dollar limitation on Medicare payment for medically necessary physical therapy, speech-language pathology, and occupational therapy services (Medicare therapy cap exceptions process). Reduces the amount of appropriations available to the Medicare Improvement Fund for expenditures for services furnished during FY2014.

Date: 2010-02-04
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Securing Effective and Necessary Individual Outpatient Rehabilitation Services (SENIORS) Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend through calendar 2011 the temporary process for obtaining an exception from the uniform dollar limitation on Medicare payment for medically necessary physical therapy, speech-language pathology, and occupational therapy services (Medicare therapy cap exceptions process). Reduces the amount of appropriations available to the Medicare Improvement Fund for expenditures for services furnished during FY2014.

Date: 2010-02-04
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Medical School Construction Grant Act - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a program to award grants to eligible medical schools for the purpose of constructing, renovating, or improving medical school facilities to increase the supply of physicians. Sets forth the allocation of such awards with first priority given to new medical schools.

Date: 2010-03-17
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Veterans Access to Care Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to designate medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as health professional shortage areas. Requires, for eligibility to participate in the National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program and the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program, that an individual not be participating in the VA's Health Professionals Educational Assistance Program. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), in carrying out the National Health Service Corps Program, to consult with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs regarding health professional shortage areas that are VA medical facilities.

Date: 2010-03-25
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Medicare Diabetes Self-Management Training Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for the recognition of state-licensed or -registered health care professionals who are certified diabetes educators as Medicare providers of diabetes outpatient self-management training services. Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the barriers that exist for Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes in accessing diabetes self-management training services under the Medicare program. Directs the Director of the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality to develop a series of recommendations on effective outreach methods to educate primary care physicians and the public about the benefits of diabetes self-management training.

Date: 2010-04-15
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), to require each Medicare participating hospital to implement a hospital-wide staffing plan for nursing services furnished in the hospital. Requires the plan to require that an appropriate number of registered nurses provide direct patient care in each unit and on each shift of the hospital to ensure staffing levels that: (1) address the unique characteristics of the patients and hospital units; and (2) result in the delivery of safe, quality patient care consistent with specified requirements. Requires each participating hospital to establish a hospital nurse staffing committee which shall implement and oversee such plan. Specifies civil monetary and other penalties for violation of the requirements of this Act. Sets forth whistleblower protections against discrimination and retaliation involving patients or employees of the hospital for their grievances, complaints, or involvement in investigations relating to such plan.

Date: 2010-06-15
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Health Emergencies Lack Provider Specialists Act of 2010 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make eligible for the National Health Service Corps loan repayment and scholarship programs specialists needed to serve medically underserved areas or populations that have needs for particular specialists related to a public health emergency declaration based upon environmental health hazard-related health concerns.

Date: 2010-07-26
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Doctor of Nursing Practice and Doctor of Pharmacy Dual Degree Program Act of 2010 - Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) there should be established a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) dual degree program; (2) the development of a joint degree in nursing and pharmacology should combine a DNP with a PharmD; (3) such a program would improve patient outcomes; (4) through such a dual collaborative role health providers will be better able to meet the unique needs of rural communities across the age continuum and in diverse settings; (5) such a program would enhance collaboration between DNPs and physicians regarding drug therapy, provide for research concerning and the implementation of safer medication administration, broaden the scope of practice for pharmacists through education and training in diagnosis and management of common diseases, provide new employment opportunities, and assist in filling the need for primary care providers with an expertise in geriatrics and pharmaceuticals; and (6) additional research and evaluation should be conducted to determine the extent to which graduates of such a program improve primary health care, address disparities, diversify the workforce, and increase quality of service for underserved populations.

Date: 2010-09-28
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Medicare Rural Physician Recruitment and Retention Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) extend the current update to the single conversion factor in the formula for the Medicare physician fee schedule through December 31, 2010; and (2) add an update for 2011 and subsequent years. Repeals the January 1, 2001, termination of the increase in the work geographic index to 1.00 for certain localities. Declares, however, that for services furnished on or after January 1, 2011, such 1.00 index shall not be applied in a budget neutral manner. Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to repeal its revisions to requirements for calculation of the practice expense portion of the geographic adjustment factor applied in a fee schedule area for services furnished in 2010 or 2011. Repeals also the requirement that the Secretary analyze current methods of establishing practice expense geographic adjustments and make appropriate further adjustments (a new methodology) to such adjustments for 2010 and subsequent years. Amends PPACA to repeal the practice expense index for services furnished in frontier states. Amends the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (HCERA) to repeal certain modifications in the employee wage and rent portions of the practice expense geographic index adjustment for 2010 and subsequent years. (Such modifications require that such portions reflect 1/2 (instead of 3/4) of the difference between the relative costs of employee wages and rents in each of the different fee schedule areas and the national average of such employee wages and rents.) Restores as though never amended corresponding previous provisions of law revised by PPACA and HCERA. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to increase the practice expense geographic index for services furnished on or after January 1, 2010, to 1.0 for certain localities. Declares that, as with the work geographic index, such increase shall not be applied in a budget neutral manner. Revises requirements for determination of full-time-equivalent (FTE) residents in an approved medical residency training program for purposes of payments for direct graduate medical education (GME) costs. Directs the Secretary to increase the limit on residents for each qualifying hospital that applies for additional residency positions. Requires an overall 15% increase in the aggregate number of FTE residency positions in approved medical residency training programs. Requires the Secretary to give preference to hospitals located in states in the lowest quartile of active physician-to-population ratio (generally, rural areas).

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Graduate Medical Education Reform Act of 2010 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and implement procedures under which the amount of payments that a hospital would otherwise receive for indirect medical education (IME) costs for discharges occurring during an applicable period is adjusted based on the performance of the hospital on specified measures of health care work force priorities. Requires bonus payments to a hospital if at least 33% of its full-time equivalent residents were enrolled in medical residency programs in primary care during the applicable period. Directs the Secretary to establish a program of payments to eligible hospitals for direct and indirect expenses associated with operating graduate medical residency training programs. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress and the National Health Care Workforce Commission on the graduate medical education (GME) payments that hospitals receive under the Medicare program. Establishes in the Treasury the Medical Education Trust Fund. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the fees on insured and self-insured health plans to provide partial financing for the Trust Fund.

Date: 2010-11-17
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Veterinary Public Health Amendments Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise a public health workforce grant program designed to increase the number of individuals in the public health workforce to include a health professions school or program of veterinary public health. Defines "veterinary public health" to include veterinarians engaged in one or more of the following areas to the extent such areas have an impact on human health: biodefense and emergency preparedness; emerging and reemerging infection diseases; environmental health; ecosystem health pre- and post-harvest food protection; regulatory medicine; diagnostic laboratory medicine; veterinary pathology; biomedical research; the practice of food animal medicine in rural areas; and government practice. Expands the public health workforce loan repayment program to make such veterinarians eligible for the program.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Animals
Access to Frontline Health Care Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and carry out a Frontline Providers Loan Repayment Program under which the Secretary agrees to make student loan repayments in exchange for a health professional providing frontline care services for two years in a frontline care scarcity area. Defines "frontline care services" as health care services in the fields of general surgery, optometry, ophthalmology, chiropractic, physical therapy, audiology, speech language pathology, pharmacies, public health, podiatric medicine, dietetics, occupational therapy, general pediatrics, respiratory therapy, medical technology, otolaryngology, or radiologic technology.

Date: 2011-02-08
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Chiropractic Membership in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make chiropractic personnel eligible for appointment in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Surgeon General to ensure that Doctors of Chiropractic are trained, equipped, and otherwise prepared to fulfill public health and emergency response service responsibilities in the Commissioned Corps. Requires the President to appoint no fewer than six Doctors of Chiropractic into the commissioned Regular Corps and the Ready Reserve Corps. Directs the Surgeon General to submit a quarterly report to the relevant congressional committees on measures taken by the President, Surgeon General, and the Secretary to carry out this Act.

Date: 2011-02-11
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to treat as a physician, for Medicare purposes, a clinical psychologist acting within the scope of a psychologist's license (or other state law authorization), but only with respect to the furnishing of clinical psychologists services which the psychologist is legally authorized to perform by the state.

Date: 2011-02-28
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), and any other federal program that provides job training and placement services for older adults, should: (1) work with nonprofit organizations that have a record of success in developing and implementing research-based technology curriculum designed specifically for older adults; and (2) partner with such organizations to provide training, student materials, and support for a broad range of workforce technology skills, including basic and intermediate computer skills, Internet, email, word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, and other appropriate key skills for assisting older workers to enter or reenter the workforce.

Date: 2011-03-02
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Labor and employment
National Health Service Corps Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of the National Health Service Corps to include optometry health services. Includes optometrists within: (1) the fellowship program for the delivery of primary health services in health professional shortage areas, (2) the National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program, and (3) the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program.

Date: 2011-03-17
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Amends the Public Health Service Act to convert funding from direct appropriations to an authorization of appropriations for a program of payments to qualified teaching health centers for approved graduate medical residency training programs. Rescinds any unobligated balances appropriated for such program.

Date: 2011-03-29
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Physical Therapist Student Loan Repayment Eligibility Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to include physical therapy within the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of the National Health Service Corps. Makes physical therapists eligible for repayment of their educational loans in order to ensure an adequate supply of physical therapists.

Date: 2011-04-07
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Danny McIntosh Emergency Medical Service Providers Protection Act - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1986 to include within the definitions of "member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew" and "public safety officer" for purposes of eligibility for public safety officers' benefits an officially recognized or designated employee or volunteer member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew that: (1) is a public agency or a nonprofit entity serving the public that is officially authorized or licensed to engage in rescue activity or to provide emergency medical services and that is officially designated as a prehospital emergency medical response agency, and (2) is engaging in rescue activity or in the provision of emergency medical services. Cancels $12 million of unobligated balances available under the Department of Justice (DOJ) Assets Forfeiture Fund.Makes this Act applicable to injuries sustained on or after June 1, 2009.

Date: 2011-05-02
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Emergency management
Servicemembers' Telemedicine and E-Health Portability Act of 2011 or STEP Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to allow certain licensed health-care professionals to provide care to members of the Armed Forces at any location and regardless of where the professional or patient are located, so long as the practice is within the scope of authorized federal duties. Includes among authorized health-care professionals civilian DOD employees, DOD personal service contractors, or other health-care professionals credentialed and privileged at a federal health care institution or location specially designated by the Secretary for such purpose. Requires a report from the Secretary to Congress on plans to develop and expand programs to use new Internet and communication technologies, including telemedicine, telehealth care services, and telebehavioral health programs, to improve patient access to care and resources.

Date: 2011-05-11
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Armed forces and national security
Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend and reauthorize appropriations for payments associated with operating approved graduate medical residency training programs.

Date: 2011-05-11
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Bleeding Disorder Screening, Awareness, and Further Education (SAFE) Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take specified action, directly or through a grant program, with respect to blood disorders in adolescents, including: (1) developing a new, or identifying an existing, screening questionnaire that is evidence-based and in accordance with clinical guidelines for use in the diagnosis of bleeding disorders in adolescents and young adults; (2) disseminating and implementing the screening questionnaire and other screening tools relevant to the diagnosis of bleeding disorders in adolescents; (3) ensuring referral for further laboratory-based diagnostic testing if screening suggests the possibility of a bleeding disorder; and (4) ensuring referral for medical management if laboratory testing confirms diagnosis of a bleeding disorder. Requires the Secretary to conduct an education campaign to increase awareness about bleeding disorders among health professionals. Requires the the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to award grants or contracts to public or nonprofit private entities to: (1) augment existing research efforts to evaluate, improve, and standardize methods for diagnosing bleeding disorders; and (2) expand ongoing efforts to determine the prevalence of bleeding disorders, identify symptoms, risk factors, and co-morbidities associated with bleeding disorders, and implement female-specific surveillance systems and conduct related research to improve bleeding symptoms and quality of life among adolescent and adult women with bleeding disorders.

Date: 2011-05-13
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Emergency Nursing Supply Relief Act - Amends the American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 to exempt until September 30, 2014, petitions for employment-based immigrants who are qualified physical therapists or professional nurses from numerical limitations on worldwide levels of employment-based immigrants and numerical limitations on individuals from individual foreign states, subject to a cap of 20,000 visas. Establishes fees for such visas. Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to award annual grants to nursing schools to increase the numbers of faculty and students at such schools. Establishes the Domestic Nursing Enhancement Account in the Treasury with funds from visa fees under this Act a to fund such grant program. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to: (1) allow an alien who has been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence and who is a physician or other health care worker to work in a candidate country (defined to include a lower middle income country or one experiencing a natural disaster) without losing eligibility for naturalization; and (2) make inadmissible alien physicians or health care workers who have an outstanding obligation to their country of origin to work as a physician or other health care worker based upon financial assistance received from such country for medical training. Allows a waiver of inadmissibility under certain circumstances. Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish a partnership program to award grants to certain health care and training entities to provide education to nurses and create a pipeline to nursing for incumbent ancillary health care workers who wish to advance their careers. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to collect and report to Congress on specified data on alien workers employed as professional nurses.

Date: 2011-05-13
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Medicaid Advanced Practice Nurses and Physician Assistants Access Act of 2011 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the state option to include nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, and physician assistants as primary care case managers. Specifies as primary care case managers any nurse practitioner, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant that provides primary care case management services under a primary care case management contract. Revises the coverage of certain nurse practitioner services under the Medicaid fee-for-service program to remove the specification of certified pediatric nurse practitioner and certified family nurse practitioner in order to extend such coverage to services furnished by a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist. Includes nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, and certified registered nurse anesthetists in the mix of service providers which Medicaid managed care organizations are required to maintain.

Date: 2011-06-03
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Nurse Staffing Standards for Patient Safety and Quality Care Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require hospitals to implement a staffing plan that includes a minimum direct care registered nurse-to-patient ratio by unit, adjustments above the minimum ratio under appropriate circumstances, and compliance with minimum licensed practical nurse staffing requirements. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a national acuity tool to establish nurse staffing requirements above minimum ratios. Directs the Secretary to adjust Medicare payments to hospitals to cover additional costs incurred in providing services to Medicare beneficiaries that are attributable to compliance with such ratios. Authorizes a nurse to object to, or refuse to participate in, any activity, policy, practice, assignment or task if in good faith it would violate minimum ratios under this Act or if the nurse is not prepared by education, training, or experience to fulfill the assignment without compromising the safety of any patient or jeopardizing the license of the nurse. Prohibits a hospital from: (1) taking specified actions against a nurse based on the nurse's refusal to accept an assignment for such a reason; or (2) discriminating against any patient, employee, or any other individual for good faith complaints or grievances relating to the care, services, or conditions of the hospital or of any affiliated or related facilities. Prohibits actions by hospitals to restrain such rights. Sets forth enforcement provisions. Applies provisions of this Act through federal health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health benefits programs.

Date: 2011-06-15
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Improving Physician Access in Teaching Hospitals (PATH) Act of 2011 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to distribution of additional resident positions as they affect calculation of payments for direct graduate medical education (DME) costs. States that, if a hospital's resident level for each of the five most recent cost reporting periods is less than the otherwise applicable resident limit, then the otherwise applicable resident limit shall be reduced by the difference between it and the highest reference resident level for any of those five cost reporting periods. Excepts from this reduction requirement a hospital: (1) located in a rural area with fewer than 250 beds, or (2) that has had in effect a voluntary residency reduction plan. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to increase the otherwise applicable resident limit (create additional residency slots) for applicant hospitals according to a specified formula that takes into account the aggregate reduction in limits attributable to this Act. Expands the primary care bonus to certain underserved specialties, such as psychiatry or neurology. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a small physician practice residency credit.

Date: 2011-06-16
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Direct Care Job Quality Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 with respect to the exemption from minimum wage and maximum hour requirements of any employee employed on a casual basis in domestic service employment to provide companionship services for individuals who because of age or infirmity are unable to care for themselves. Extends the same exemption to a casual employee in domestic service employment to provide companionship services for disabled individuals unable to care for themselves. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a direct care workforce monitoring program. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require a state Medicaid plan to require the state to report annually to the Secretary on the adequacy of its direct care workforce to provide long-term care (LTC) services. Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to require the National Health Care Workforce Commission, as a high priority, to review, analyze, and report annually to Congress and the Health Resources and Services Administration on the current and projected direct care workforce supply and demand. Directs the Secretary to award grants to states, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to develop data collection and monitoring systems to assess the adequacy of a state's or tribe's direct care workforce to meet current and future demand for LTC services. Directs the Secretary to award competitive three-year grants to states and other eligible entities to improve the recruitment, retention, and education of direct care workers.

Date: 2011-06-23
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Labor and employment
Health Care Professionals Protection Act of 2011 - Amends the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 to prohibit a health care entity from submitting a report to the National Practitioner Data Bank on a professional review action that would adversely affect a physician's clinical privileges while the physician is under investigation before adequate notice of and hearing procedures for such action and investigation or such other procedures as are fair are afforded to the physician. Applies such prohibition to permissive reporting to the Board of Medical Examiners for a licensed health care practitioner who is not a physician. Requires a health care entity to provide a physician with copies of all evidence expected to be offered against the physician in any hearing on a professional review action.

Date: 2011-07-08
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health
Emergency Medic Transition (EMT) Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to state emergency medical services offices or other state entities with jurisdiction over emergency medical personnel to provide for the expedited training and licensing, as emergency medical technicians (EMTs), of veterans who received training as EMTs while serving in the Armed Forces. Directs an eligible entity to give priority to providing training to individuals who will serve as EMTs in areas that provide a high volume of emergency medical services and trauma care.

Date: 2011-09-07
Topic: Health (Manpower)
Subject: Health