[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1263 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1263

   To establish a program that would assist abandoned and medically 
                            fragile infants.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 16, 1995

   Mr. Payne of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish a program that would assist abandoned and medically 
                            fragile infants.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Abandoned and Medically Fragile 
Infants Assistance Act of 1995''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) throughout the Nation, the number of infants and young 
        children who have been exposed to drugs taken by their mothers 
        during pregnancy has increased dramatically;
            (2) the inability of parents who abuse drugs to provide 
        adequate care for such infants and young children and a lack of 
        suitable shelter homes for such infants and young children have 
        led to the abandonment of such infants and young children in 
        hospitals for extended periods;
            (3) an unacceptable number of these infants and young 
        children will be medically cleared for discharge, yet remain in 
        hospitals as boarder babies;
            (4) hospital-based child care for these infants and young 
        children is extremely costly and deprives them of an adequate 
        nurturing environment;
            (5) training is inadequate for foster care personnel 
        working with medically fragile infants and young children and 
        infants and young children exposed to drugs;
            (6) a particularly devastating development is the increase 
        in the number of infants and young children who are infected 
        with the human immunodeficiency virus (which is believed to 
        cause acquired immune deficiency syndrome and which is commonly 
        known as HIV) or who have been perinatally exposed to the virus 
        or to a dangerous drug;
            (7) many such infants and young children have at least one 
        parent who is an intravenous drug abuser;
            (8) such infants and young children are particularly 
        difficult to place in foster homes, and are being abandoned in 
        hospitals in increasing numbers by mothers dying of acquired 
        immune deficiency syndrome, or by parents incapable of 
        providing adequate care;
            (9) there is a need for comprehensive services for such 
        infants and young children, including foster family care 
        services, case management services, family support services, 
        respite and crisis intervention services, counseling services, 
        and group residential home services;
            (10) there is a need to support the families of such 
        infants and young children through the provision of services 
        that will prevent the abandonment of the infants and children; 
        and
            (11) there is a need for the development of funding 
        strategies that coordinate and make the optimal use of all 
        private resources, and Federal, State, and local resources, to 
        establish and maintain such services.

SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR PROJECTS REGARDING ABANDONMENT OF INFANTS AND YOUNG 
              CHILDREN IN HOSPITALS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may 
make grants to public and nonprofit private entities for the purpose of 
developing, implementing, and operating projects--
            (1) to prevent the abandonment of infants and young 
        children, including the provision of services to members of the 
        natural family for any condition that increases the probability 
        of abandonment of an infant or young child;
            (2) to identify and address the needs of abandoned infants 
        and young children;
            (3) to assist abandoned infants and young children to 
        reside with their natural families or in foster care, as 
        appropriate;
            (4) to recruit, train, and retain foster families for 
        abandoned infants and young children;
            (5) to carry out residential care programs for abandoned 
        infants and young children who are unable to reside with their 
        families or to be placed in foster care;
            (6) to carry out programs of respite care for families and 
        foster families of infants and young children described in 
        subsection (b);
            (7) to recruit and train health and social services 
        personnel to work with families, foster care families, and 
        residential care programs for abandoned infants and young 
        children; and
            (8) to prevent the abandonment of infants and young 
        children, and to care for the infants and young children who 
        have been abandoned, through model programs providing health, 
        educational, and social services at a single site in a 
        geographic area in which a significant number of infants and 
        young children described in subsection (b) reside (with special 
        consideration given to applications from entities that will 
        provide the services of the project through community-based 
        organizations).
    (b) Priority in Provision of Services.--The Secretary may not make 
a grant under subsection (a) unless the applicant for the grant agrees 
that, in carrying out the purpose described in subsection (a) (other 
than with respect to paragraph (6) of such subsection), the applicant 
will give priority to abandoned infants and young children--
            (1) who are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus 
        or who have been perinatally exposed to the virus; or
            (2) who have been perinatally exposed to a dangerous drug.
    (c) Case Plan With Respect to Foster Care.--The Secretary may not 
make a grant under subsection (a) unless the applicant for the grant 
agrees that, if the applicant expends the grant to carry out any 
program of providing care to infants and young children in foster homes 
or in other nonmedical residential settings away from their parents, 
the applicant will ensure that--
            (1) a case plan of the type described in paragraph (1) of 
        section 475 of the Social Security Act is developed for each 
        such infant and young child (to the extent that such infant and 
        young child is not otherwise covered by such a plan); and
            (2) the program includes a case review system of the type 
        described in paragraph (5) of such section (covering each such 
        infant and young child who is not otherwise subject to such a 
        system).
    (d) Administration of Grant.--
            (1) The Secretary may not make a grant under subsection (a) 
        unless the applicant for the grant agrees--
                    (A) to use the funds provided under this section 
                only for the purposes specified in the application 
                submitted to, and approved by, the Secretary pursuant 
                to subsection (e);
                    (B) to establish such fiscal control and fund 
                accounting procedures as may be necessary to ensure 
                proper disbursement and accounting of Federal funds 
                paid to the applicant under this section; and
                    (C) to report to the Secretary annually on the 
                utilization, cost, and outcome of activities conducted, 
                and services furnished, under this section.
    (e) Requirement of Application.--The Secretary may not make a grant 
under subsection (a) unless--
            (1) an application for the grant is submitted to the 
        Secretary;
            (2) with respect to carrying out the purpose for which the 
        grant is to be made, the application provides assurances of 
        compliance satisfactory to the Secretary; and
            (3) the application otherwise is in such form, is made in 
        such manner, and contains such agreements, assurances, and 
        information as the Secretary determines to be necessary to 
        carry out this section.

SEC. 4. GRANTS TO PROVIDE NURTURING HOME ENVIRONMENTS AND FAMILY-
              CENTERED SERVICES FOR MEDICALLY FRAGILE INFANTS.

    The Secretary may make grants to public and nonprofit entities for 
the purposes of developing, implementing, or operating--
            (1) programs and activities to prevent the medical neglect 
        of disabled infants with life-threatening conditions;
            (2) information, education, and training programs designed 
        to improve the provision of services to disabled infants with 
        life-threatening conditions for--
                    (A) professional and paraprofessional personnel 
                concerned with the welfare of disabled infants with 
                life-threatening conditions, including personnel 
                employed in child protective services programs and 
                health care facilities; and
                    (B) the parents of such infants; and
            (3) programs to assist in obtaining or coordinating 
        necessary services for families of disabled infants with life-
        threatening conditions, including--
                    (A) existing social and health services;
                    (B) financial assistance; and
                    (C) services necessary to facilitate adoptive 
                placement of any such infant who is legally free for 
                adoption.

SEC. 5. EVALUATIONS, STUDIES, AND REPORTS BY SECRETARY.

    The Secretary shall, directly or through contracts with public and 
nonprofit private entities, provide for evaluations of projects carried 
out under this Act and for the dissemination of information developed 
as result of such projects.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) The terms ``abandoned'' and ``abandonment'', with 
        respect to infants and young children, mean that the infants 
        and young children are medically cleared for discharge from 
        acute-care hospital settings, but remain hospitalized because 
        of a lack of appropriate out-of-hospital placement 
        alternatives.
            (2) The term ``dangerous drug'' means a controlled 
        substance, as defined in section 102 of the Controlled 
        Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802).
            (3) The term ``natural family'' shall be broadly 
        interpreted to include natural parents, grandparents, family 
        members, guardians, children residing in the Household, and 
        individuals residing in the household on a continuing basis who 
        are in a care-giving situation with respect to infants and 
        young children covered under this Act.
            (4) The term ``acquired immune deficiency syndrome'' 
        includes infection with the etiologic agent for such syndrome, 
        any condition indicating that an individual is infected with 
        such etiologic agent, and any condition arising from such 
        etiologic agent.
            (5) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--For the purpose of carrying out this Act, there 
are authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 for fiscal year 1996 and 
such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1997, 1998, 
1999, and 2000.
    (b) Availability of Funds.--Amounts appropriated under this section 
shall remain available until expended.
            (1) Conforming amendment.--Section 421(7) of the Domestic 
        Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 5061(7)) is amended to 
        read as follows:
            ``(7) the term `border baby' means an infant described in 
        section 6(1) of the Abandoned and Medically Fragile Infants 
        Assistance Act of 1995.''.
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